Up Around the Bend
by alisonmichal
Summary: Sam, Dean, and Alec go on a hunt in the woods. Part of the Family series.
1. Chapter 1

_Here's the next story in the Family series. I have a lot going on right now, but hopefully I can still update pretty frequently. And I hope y'all like this story!_

* * *

"Wait…" Alec said suspiciously. "I thought we were hunting…"

"We are," Dean said with a smile; he loved messing with the kid. Alec was always up for hunting, but he started being suspicious about 20 miles ago. They were in the middle of nowhere, and at first, he'd thought Dean had been kidding when he'd stopped the car on a hidden side road.

"Then why does it look like we're camping?" Alec asked, grabbing the bag that Sam was holding out to him. "Because I know we're not camping…" Alec continued. "…because you hate camping. You told Sam that like 20 times on the way here. And Sam always replied with 'we're not camping' every single time."

"We're not camping," Sam said with a smile. He was all for messing with Alec. They weren't going camping, but they both refused to tell Alec what they were really doing. They would have to tell him eventually though. He would need to know what they would be up against.

"Then why does it look like we're camping?" Alec repeated. "We're in the woods, we packed some food and enough clothes for a couple days, we're in the middle of nowhere, and did I mention we were in the woods? Why would we be in the woods if we weren't camping?"

Dean couldn't help but laugh. Alec scowled back at him. "We are hunting," Dean reassured. "But what we're hunting is in the woods."

"What is it?" Alec asked curiously.

"A Wendigo," Dean answered.

"Oh…cool," Alec said, nodded a little bit. Dean looked over at Sam who just smiled back. "I have no idea what that is," Alec stated when Sam and Dean didn't start explaining.

Dean chuckled and ruffled Alec's hair. Alec pushed his hand away and scowled, which just made Dean laugh more.

"It used to be human, but it turned to cannibalism to survive," Sam explained patiently. He shot a disapproving look to Dean, but he just shrugged back.

Sam opened his mouth to continue his explanation, but Dean cut him off, "It turned into this superhuman thing that is stronger and faster and is pretty much immortal. And it feed off of people to survive-"

"Which is where we come in," Sam cut in with a small smirk. Dean glared at him, but his smirk turned into a smile.

"Ok," Alec said before Sam and Dean could keep going. "How do you kill it?"

"Fire," Dean replied before Sam could. "We ended up using flare guns last time and they worked pretty well."

"And it lives in the middle of nowhere?" Alec asked, his eyebrows rising in disbelief.

Dean chuckled again, "Yeah-"

"It usually holes up somewhere dark and cold, like caves," Sam said over Dean.

Dean shook his head in amusement and lightly shoved Sam over. Sam couldn't help laughing at being able to aggravate him.

"Bitch," Dean said with a laugh.

"Jerk," Sam instantly shot back.

Dean caught Alec rolling his eyes, but he couldn't help the look of amusement on his face.

"Anyway…" Alec said after a moment. "How do you guys know it's a Wendigo?"

Dean shot a look over to Sam to see if he was going to answer, but he gestured for Dean to go ahead. "Well, there's been a pattern…people keep going missing about every 20 years. This year, there've been four disappearances."

"Cody and Stacy Carrolton were a couple that went camping six months ago and disappeared, Paul Westland went missing three months ago on a fishing trip, and a couple weeks ago, Zach Peters, lived around here and was just gone one morning," Sam said.

"That's what his wife says anyway," Dean muttered.

"How do we find it?" Alec asked.

"Well, we're gonna walk a ways to where some of them disappeared, and hopefully we'll track it down from there," Dean replied.

Sam held out a duffle bag for Alec to take, but then pulled it back slightly, "Did you pack some warm clothes?"

Alec rolled his eyes, "Yeah, even though I told you I run warmer than you do."

"I don't care," Sam sternly replied, "It gets cold up here, especially at night, and we can't afford you getting sick."

"Jeez, what did you worry about before I came along," Alec said sarcastically. "I don't get sick and I did pack warm clothes. You should probably stop worrying before you get an ulcer."

Dean threw his head back and laughed, "Alec, with the amount that Sam worries, it should be his middle name…"

"Sam Worry Winchester…I like it," Alec said with a smile.

"Sue me for caring," Sam grumbled.

"Oh, c'mon Sammy," Dean said, lightly bumping into Sam as he started walking. "We know you care."

"We care too," Alec threw in; coming up to Sam's other side. "We just don't want you to worry yourself to death."

Sam made a grab at Alec, but Alec took off and stood a few feet away out of reach. He had a wide smile on his face and Dean couldn't help but chuckle at the annoyance that covered Sam's face. Sam glared at Alec, and then switched his glare over to Dean.

Dean laughed for just a moment more before he sobered, "Alright, Alec get back over here. We should stop messin' around for a while and start hunting."

Alec smirked, but he walked back over to them a few seconds later.

* * *

"You think these people were lost?" Alec asked after they'd been walking for a few hours. He couldn't fathom why people would go this far just to go camping. It was like they were asking for some monster to eat them.

"Maybe," Dean replied over his shoulder.

Alec still had his doubts that this was a real hunt; he thought Sam and Dean were just messing with him. He kept waiting for Dean to prank him, but he hadn't done anything yet. The waiting was just about to kill him. He hated waiting for it, but he didn't want to be the one to strike first. He wanted to see what he was dealing with first.

Dean was walking a little ways ahead, leading the way, while Sam stayed back and walked with Alec.

"Is this a real hunt?" Alec whispered to Sam. He just had to make sure and he knew Sam wouldn't lie to him if he asked him outright.

Sam smiled and nodded, "Yeah, this is a real hunt."

Alec narrowed his eyes and scanned Sam's face just to make sure. Finding that Sam looked like he was telling the truth, Alec finally nodded. "Ok," he replied easily.

"Ok? That's it?" Sam asked in amusement. "You're just taking my word for it?"

Alec shrugged, "Yeah. If you say it's a hunt, then it is."

"…But if Dean said it was a hunt?" Sam asked slowly.

"If I asked him outright, he'd tell me the truth. Just like you did," Alec replied. He trusted Sam and Dean wholeheartedly. They'd shown him the same trust and it was only right that he return the favor.

Sam smiled and nodded. He looked like he was about to say something, but he never got the chance. One minute Sam was there and the next he wasn't. Alec looked around and spotted him just in time to see him hit a tree. There was a crack, and then Sam crumbled to the ground.

Alec was running before he could even process what happened. Thanks to his speed, he got to Sam before Dean did. Sam was breathing hard and he was struggling to sit up, but he was conscious so that was a good sign.

"Sam?!" Alec crouched down next to his fallen brother and carefully started to check him over.

"My leg…" Sam breathed out; sweat breaking out on his forehead.

Alec quickly switched his focus to Sam's left leg and instantly found the break. Sam's leg was bent at a painful angle and Alec winced in sympathy.

"You alright?!" Dean asked as he ran up to them. He had one of the flare guns out and was keeping his focus on the woods surrounding them.

"Yeah," Sam grunted, his teeth clenched against the pain.

Alec glanced up at Dean and met his worried gaze. "How bad is it?" Dean asked, looking away from him and scanning the woods again.

"I can set it…but…" Alec didn't want to finish his statement. This was going to really hurt Sam, and then they had to walk all the way back to the car…

"Do it," Sam cut in with determination.

"Sam…" Alec started slowly.

"Alec, do it," Sam stated.

Alec met his eyes, just to be sure, but Sam just stared back at him evenly. "That thing was fast…" Alec suddenly said to distract Sam.

"Yeah…told you it was rea-AHHHH!" Sam cried out as Alec snapped the bones back into place. Sam tried to rip his broken leg out of Alec's hold, but Alec refused to let go.

"Easy Sam," Dean murmured. He patted Sam's shoulder, but he kept his eyes trained on their surroundings. He wasn't going to let anything get to his brothers if he could help it.

"Sorry," Alec said sheepishly. "Thought it would be better if you weren't expecting it…"

"It's alright," Sam managed to ground out. His eyes were shut tight against the pain, but Alec knew it wasn't going to end any time soon.

"Don't move," Alec told Sam before he got up. He went looking for a couple of sturdy branches to use as a makeshift splint, and luckily, it didn't take too long to find. He went back to Sam's side with two branches in hand. He rummaged through his duffle until he found his least favorite t-shirt and started ripping it into strips.

"This is gonna hurt," Alec warned before he put the branches against Sam's leg. Sam let out a small sound whimper as Alec tied the strips tight to hold the branches in place. He hated doing this, but this was the only way Sam would be able to travel at all.

"You're doin' good, Alec," Dean quietly reassured, sensing that he was feeling guilty for causing Sam more pain.

Alec just nodded back to acknowledge that he'd heard Dean, but he didn't say anything in reply.

It only took him a few more minutes, and then he was done. Dean held out a bottle of water to Sam, and Sam gratefully took it from him.

"Thanks," Sam muttered, glancing at Dean and Alec.

"Think you can make it back to the car?" Dean asked.

Sam didn't immediately reply and Alec and Dean both shot him a look of concern. Alec knew with one look that whatever Sam was thinking, Dean wasn't going to like it.

"Dean, we already know we're on the right track," Sam started out and Dean instantly started shaking his head no.

"No. We're going back to the car and getting you to a hospital," Dean said, and it sounded like there wasn't any room for argument.

"We're already here. We just need to find it and-"

"No Sam!"

Alec thought about, for just a moment, the possibility of splitting up. He could take Sam back to the car and Dean could hunt the Wendigo. But there was no way he could leave Dean without backup, especially after seeing how fast this thing actually was.

"Dean," Sam said again, only this time his tone was softer. "There's a chance that the last guy is still alive. We have to find him." Dean looked up at Sam and met his eyes, and Alec knew Dean was about to cave. "Y'know, the saving people part of the family motto…" Sam said with a small smirk.

Dean smirked back and slowly started to nod. "Yeah…I don't like it, but we do need to try and get him out…"

"Before you even start thinking about splitting up," Alec cut in, seeing the look on Dean's face change from giving in, to getting a bad idea. "Cause I know you are. I've already thought about it, and it isn't happening. There's no way you're goin' after this thing by yourself."

"Alec…" Dean started, to try and reason with him.

"No," Alec said, refusing to give an inch. "Even crappy backup like me is better than nothing."

Alec kept his gaze locked with Dean's; there was no way he was letting Dean do this.

Dean must have realized that Alec wasn't budging because he sighed in frustration, "Fine." He looked away and went back to keeping an eye out for the Wendigo.

Alec breathed out a sigh of relief and turned back to Sam who was looking at him gratefully. Alec helped Sam up, but Sam had to lean heavily against him.

"I gotcha," Alec reassured, pulling Sam's arm over his shoulders and wrapping his arm around Sam's waist.

"Thanks Alec," Sam said after a few unsteady steps. Alec shot a quick smile over at Sam before they both had to go back to concentrating on walking.

Dean waited for them to hobble over before they slowly continued their search.

* * *

"You wanna stop here for a minute?" Alec asked once they cleared the trees to a small lake.

Sam just nodded back, unable to say anything in reply. He was out of breath and everything he had was going into just taking another step. Alec led him over to a rock wall a few feet away and helped him sit down. Sam leaned against the wall in relief, glad for the break.

Dean came over a moment later and gave him a water bottle. Sam nodded his thanks and drank about half the bottle before he handed it back.

"Think we should stop here for the night?" Dean asked Alec.

Alec glanced over at Sam and then looked back to Dean and nodded. "Yeah, we could use a break and the water will be one less side the Wendigo can attack us from."

Dean nodded in agreement, and then patted Alec on the chest, "You wanna get some firewood?"

"Sure," Alec replied.

He started walking back to the woods when Dean called out, "Don't go too far!"

"Whatever!" Alec called back, but Sam could hear the smile in his voice.

Dean shook his head and Sam couldn't help but chuckle. Dean and Alec were so similar and it was hilarious to see Dean get a taste of his own medicine.

"You just love it when he does that to me," Dean said, but he had a small smile tugging at his lips.

"Serves you right," Sam replied. "I've had to deal with it my whole life. It's nice to see it happen to you for a change."

Dean just grumbled back something unintelligible which just made Sam smile more. Dean always knew how to make him smile.

Alec came back and dumped an armload of firewood to the ground. He looked over at Sam and Dean for a second, but then he snapped his focus back to the woods. Sam and Dean both instantly went on high alert. They both trusted Alec's hearing more than their own.

Dean handed Sam a flare gun without taking his eyes off of Alec, and slowly started to stand.

Sam felt almost completely useless thanks to his leg. But at least he had a flare gun so he wasn't completely defenseless.

Alec kept his focus on the woods, but held his hand out behind him. Dean moved toward him and put the third flare gun in Alec's outstretched hand. Dean and Alec took up identical stances with their guns held up and ready to fire.

It was silent throughout the woods; birds weren't chirping and there wasn't even a rustle through the leaves. It was eerily quiet and Sam felt his skin crawl. His breathing sounded too loud to him, but he couldn't help it. His leg was killing him and he just wanted to hurry up and kill this thing and get out of there.

The leaves suddenly shifted to the left and all three of them snapped their attention that way. Sam couldn't see anything, and he knew the thing was just messing with them.

The leaves rustled again, but to their right this time. Dean silently motioned for Alec to back up towards Sam and he didn't argue. Alec slowly made his way back until he was next to Sam, but he was still focused on the woods.

Sam just barely caught a glimpse of something as it ran through the trees. He tried to follow it with his eyes, but it was just too fast.

There was nothing for a few minutes, but the three of them refused to relax.

It didn't matter how ready they were though, they just couldn't defend against something they couldn't see. It moved too fast for them to really react and it knew who its biggest threat would be. It blew by Dean and pushed him so he went flying and hit a tree hard. Dean crumpled to the ground and the Wendigo went right for Alec.

Sam was helpless as Alec followed its movement and lined up his shot. He fired, but he just barely missed. But that miss cost him.

The Wendigo ran up, smashed Alec's head against the rock wall, tossed him out to the lake where he landed with a splash, and then it was gone. It did that all faster than Sam could even shift his aim.

Sam looked around almost frantically to try and find the Wendigo. He blinked, and then the Wendigo was right in front on him. It knocked the flare gun from his hands, and then hit him hard and everything went black.

* * *

Dean struggled to his feet; his head and shoulder hurt, but he had his flare gun up and ready to fire as soon as he was conscious. He scanned the area, but he knew the Wendigo was gone; it was just part of his instincts.

Once he knew there wasn't a threat, he looked for his brothers. But they weren't by the rock wall where he last saw them.

His first thought was to call out for them, but that would probably just bring the Wendigo back. Instead, he slowly walked over to the rock wall and looked for any clues as to what happened. There was a streak of blood at about eye level that had probably come from Alec.

There was some more blood on the ground that he thought could have come from Sam. Dean crouched down and saw that there were drag marks from where he thought the Wendigo could have drug one of them. The drag marks were just for one person, which left more questions than it answered.

Which one of his brothers did the Wendigo take and where was his other brother?

Dean stood up and looked around him. He didn't see any footprints, but his eyes caught on some movement in the water. He squinted and saw ripples that were starting to fade and his breath caught in his chest. His instincts kicked in again, and he knew one of his brothers was in the water.

* * *

 _More soon..._


	2. Chapter 2

Dean didn't waste any time before he started running for the edge of the water. He kicked off his boots as he ran and shrugged out of his jacket before he hit the frigid water.

His breath almost left him at the shock of how cold it was, but he couldn't waste a second to get used to it. He had to get to his brother before it was too late. He had no idea if it was Sam or Alec in the water, but it didn't matter. Both of them were his brothers and he wouldn't be able to handle it if one of them died.

He also didn't know how long they had been in the water. The only thing he knew for sure was that his brothers were missing. If it turned out neither of them were in the water and he was getting wet for no reason, he'd be fine with it. He just wanted to be completely sure that his brothers were safe. But he had a bad feeling that one of them was slowly slipping away.

Dean waded into the water until he was about to his waist, and then he dove in. The water was freezing; it felt like a thousand needles slammed into him at once. It was enough to freeze your breath in your lungs and make your chest feel tight.

He ignored that though, as much as he could, and swam for the spot where he had seen the ripples. It was hard to see in the murky water, and he had to go kind of slow since he didn't want to miss anything. He went back up to the surface to get a breath, and then dove back down.

He had to get a breath two more times before he finally saw what could be someone. They were kind of just floating there, with their arms floating out to the sides. Dean kicked hard, and once he got closer, he knew it was Alec. He could see his dark blue hand-me-down jacket that he'd given Alec a few weeks ago, and his short hair wasn't floating as much as Sam's would have been.

Dean maneuvered himself behind Alec and wrapped his arm under Alec's arm and across his chest. Once he had a good hold, he kicked for the surface as fast as he could. His head broke the surface and he shook the water from his face and hair so he could see. He glanced down at Alec, but he had his eyes closed and he almost looked like he was sleeping. But there was a pale blue color to his skin and he was a dead weight in Dean's arms. This definitely wasn't reassuring.

Dean rested Alec's back against his chest and kept his arm wrapped around Alec's chest so he could get him to shore. He wanted to panic at seeing Alec so lifeless, but panicking wouldn't help anything. He had to stay focused so he could get Alec back with him.

Dean shot a look over his shoulder as he kicked towards the shore. He was a little reassured to see that they weren't too far away.

"Alright kiddo, we're almost there," Dean murmured to Alec even though he knew he wasn't going to get a response. He hated the quiet, especially since this was Alec. Most of the time it was hard to get him to stop talking and the silence was unsettling.

His feet finally hit the rocky bottom and he changed his grip on Alec so he had both hands under his arms. He pulled him most of the way out of the water, but his feet were still in it. Dean decided he could worry about that later; right now, he needed to get Alec breathing again.

He quickly dropped to his knees next to Alec and put two fingers against Alec's throat to check his pulse. At the same time, he ducked his head down by Alec's mouth, hoping that some air would brush his cheek.

"C'mon Alec," Dean grumbled when he didn't find a pulse and no air slipped past Alec's lips.

Dean immediately got into position to start doing CPR. He put one hand in the middle of Alec's chest, and then put his other hand on top of his first. He locked his arms, and then pressed down. He did thirty chest compressions before he stopped. He tipped Alec's head back, pinched his nose, and then breathed in twice, watching Alec's chest rise and fall two times before he was still again.

Dean started up the chest compressions again. He did thirty before he breathed twice for Alec, and then went back.

"C'mon Alec, you can't do this to me," Dean said slightly breathless as he tried to force Alec to come back to him. He wasn't going to let Alec die; he was his little brother, and if he died, part of Dean would die too. He stopped the compressions and breathed twice. The air went into Alec's lungs, but he still didn't start breathing by himself.

Dean went back to chest compressions. This time he was halfway through his cycle when he felt one of Alec's ribs give way and break. Dean winced in sympathy, "Sorry kiddo…"

Alec, of course, didn't react. His eyes remained closed and his skin was still a pale blue; from lack of air or the cold, Dean didn't know. Probably a combination of the two.

He breathed again for Alec, and then went back to compressions. He was starting to get tired, but he wasn't going to give up. Alec could handle a lot; he was a tough kid and he would fight his way back. Dean had to believe that to keep himself going.

Dean felt another rib break beneath his hands, but it couldn't be helped. This is what it took to get Alec back, no matter how guilty it made him feel for causing Alec more pain.

Two breaths. Thirty compressions. Two breaths. Thirty compressions. Two breaths. Thirty Compressions. Two breaths. Thirty Compressions.

Dean pinched Alec's nose and breathed once. He took a breath and almost breathed again when Alec finally gave a choked cough. Water came up and Alec started to really cough. Dean let out a breath of relief, and then rolled Alec to his side so he wouldn't choke on the water he was coughing up. He threw up after a minute of coughing, and Dean made sure he didn't get it on himself.

Alec's muscles relaxed after he was done and he lay on the ground with his eyes closed, but still breathing. Dean's heart was pounding and his eyes were suddenly full of tears; he'd almost lost Alec. That thought had him pulling Alec up to a sitting position, and then he crushed Alec against him in a desperate hug.

Dean was exhausted, Alec had nearly died, and Sam was missing, he thought he deserved a hug right now. Not only that, but this way he really was reassured that Alec had made it back to him. Alec's forehead was in the crook of his neck; his short hair brushed against him and his breath tickled his cheek. Alec's arm came up and he desperately clung to Dean's shirt; his breath was shallow, but it was better than nothing. That had been way too close.

Dean held Alec like that for just a minute, and then he felt the cold start to creep in. They were both soaking wet and he needed to get them warmed up before they had another problem on their hands. Dean put his hands on Alec's shoulders and held him out at arm's length. Alec looked back at him with bleary eyes.

"Let's not do that again," Dean said with a light chuckle; he was just so happy that Alec was alive.

Alec nodded back, but he sort of looked like a bobble head. He looked pretty out of it, which Dean thought was probably normal, but he didn't really know.

Dean got to his feet, and then pulled Alec up to stand. Alec swayed and Dean quickly pulled him next to himself to give him support. Alec shut his eyes tight and clenched his jaw; Dean knew he was in pain, but he didn't know what was causing it. He couldn't do much about it yet though. His next priority was to get Alec warmed up.

It was like he had a checklist in his head; get Alec breathing, get warm, check injuries, find Sam. He had a lot to do, and all he wanted to do was sleep. Definitely not a good sign considering that was a sign of hypothermia. And he didn't have room on his list for hypothermia. Hopefully he just felt exhausted because of the CPR and not because of the cold.

He got Alec away from the water and moved him to where they had dropped their duffle bags and where Alec had dropped the firewood. Dean sat Alec down, but he even looked unsteady like that, so he ended up making Alec lay down so he couldn't fall over.

Dean kept an eye on Alec while he started the fire. He couldn't shake the feeling that he was going to lose Alec, and he knew this feeling wouldn't go away for a while. He wasn't going to be able to help the overprotectiveness during and after this hunt.

He coaxed the fire up until there was a nice warm circle for them. He went over to the duffle bags and found them both some dry clothes to change into. He ran back to the shore to get his jacket and boots before he went back to the fire.

Alec's eyes were closed when he got back, but his chest was still rising and falling with his breathing. Dean tapped the back of Alec's hand when he walked up so he knew he was there.

"Alec, I gotta get you into dry clothes, so you're gonna have to sit up," Dean warned. His own teeth were starting to chatter, so he knew he needed to get moving.

Alec slowly opened his eyes to look back at him, but he didn't say anything. Dean figured that was permission enough and gently grabbed Alec's arms and pulled him up. Dean started getting Alec's jacket and outer shirt off of him, and he tried to help, but his arms weren't cooperating.

It didn't matter though, because Dean was an expert at this. He had dressed Sam when he was a baby until he was old enough to do it himself. And then he'd had to help Sam when he was too sick to move or even his Dad when he was either hurt or drunk. He could easily get Alec out of his wet clothes and into dry ones, especially since Alec was trying to help him and not stop him.

"Can you raise your arms up?" Dean asked quietly. Alec nodded, and then put both arms up so Dean could just pull his t-shirt up and completely off.

Alec was starting to shiver now, but he looked a little more aware than he had a few minutes ago, which was a good sign. Dean draped his dry jacket over Alec's bare shoulders, and then moved down so he could remove Alec's boots. He immediate put them by the fire to hopefully get them dry by morning. He grabbed the clothes he had for Alec and brought them over since he'd be putting them on soon.

"Time to stand up," Dean said once all that was left was Alec's jeans and boxers. Alec actually held his hand out so Dean could help him up. Another good sign. Dean pulled him up and steadied him once he was standing.

It wasn't too hard to get his jeans off now that he was up; Alec even did most of the work.

"Where's Sam?" Alec suddenly asked softly. It was a good thing that Dean's whole focus was centered on Alec; otherwise he wouldn't have heard him. But he was really glad to hear Alec's voice again, no matter how soft it was.

"I don't know," Dean quietly admitted. "I think the Wendigo took him…"

Dean handed Alec a dry pair of boxers, and then turned around so he could have a semblance of privacy. Alec braced himself with his hand on Dean's shoulder while he changed.

"Alright…I'm done," Alec said after a moment.

Dean turned back around and helped Alec get into a pair of jeans. He was moving a little better now, but he was still a little out of it. Dean got Alec into a long sleeved shirt, got him in an extra layer, and then put a coat on him. He was still shivering though, so Dean moved him closer to the fire before he helped him sit on the ground.

Dean crouched down so he was eyelevel with Alec. He waited until Alec met his gaze and then asked, "You ok for a minute?"

Alec nodded and Dean made sure he was steady before he went back to the duffle bags. He changed as quickly as he could so he could get back to Alec. He wasn't going to get the feeling that Alec was ok for a long time. Even just this short time away from him was making him anxious. Alec had been practically dead and Dean couldn't get the sight of Alec's still body out of his head.

Alec shifted to try and get more comfortable, but a small whimper escaped his lips and Dean was instantly on alert. He went back over to Alec and looked him over to try and figure out what was causing him the most pain.

"What hurts?" Dean asked, kneeling down to meet Alec's eyes.

Alec gave him a ghost of his smirk and whispered, "Everything…"

Dean huffed out a laugh and reached up to ruffle Alec's hair when he saw blood starting to trail through his hair and down the side of his cheek. Dean got up to get the first aid kit out of one of the bags, and then walked back.

Alec didn't argue at all as Dean started cleaning the cut, and then checked to see if he needed stitches. He didn't, so Dean cleaned the rest of the blood off of his face. He pressed some gauze against the cut, and then brought Alec's hand up so he could hold it in place to stop the bleeding.

Dean started pulling Alec's shirts up so he could check how much damage he did during CPR.

"You feelin' me up?" Alec asked quietly, amusement coloring his tone even though his eyelids were starting to droop.

"Hey, we already made it past first base," Dean teased. He lightly touched Alec's chest to find the breaks and Alec sucked in a sharp breath when he found one. Alec started gasping for air after the one sharp breath and Dean abandoned his check to try and get Alec to breathe easier.

He moved beside Alec so he could rub his back and soothed, "Easy…take slower breaths…I gotcha."

Alec leaned against him and tried to get his breathing under control. "How'd you learn CPR?" Alec finally gasped out, and Dean knew he wanted something to distract him.

"Dad made me learn since I was the one taking care of Sammy and he didn't want something to happen while he was gone. Sam had to learn when he started hunting with us just in case. I've only done it one time before this and it was for a stranger…" Dean felt his throat tighten up thinking about what had happened and decided to switch the topic a little. Alec's breathing was shallow, but it was back under his control so Dean asked, "Do you know what all happened?"

Alec nodded against his shoulder, "Sorta…The Wendigo smacked my head against the rock wall, and then I woke up choking…" Alec smiled a little and said, "Thanks, by the way, for…y'know…saving my life…"

Dean squeezed his shoulders in a half hug and admitted, "I thought I'd lost you…"

"Can't get rid of me that easily…" Alec muttered.

"Good," Dean replied sincerely. They sat there for a minute, and then Dean said, "I'm gonna try and listen to your breathing real quick ok?"

"You suddenly get your Doctorate or something?" Alec asked in amusement.

"No smart ass," Dean said with a smile. "But if you've got a collapsed lung I'll know what it sounds like, and then we have to get you out of here. And I'll come back and find Sam once I get you to the hospital."

"I don't have a collapsed lung," Alec stated.

"Just shut up and let me listen," Dean said, leaning his head down to put his ear at Alec's chest. "Breathe in." Alec didn't argue with him and took as deep of a breath as he could. Dean motioned for him to do it again and he did.

"What's the diagnosis Doc?" Alec asked sarcastically when Dean sat up again.

"You don't have a collapsed lung…" Dean started.

"Told you," Alec replied with a small smirk.

Dean shot him a quick glare and then continued, "…but I don't actually know what's wrong."

"Which means that you aren't taking me to the hospital," Alec said triumphantly.

Dean still wasn't sure if he should take Alec to the hospital right away or not. But he couldn't ignore the fact that Sam was still missing and they had to find him. That was next on the to-do list and he knew Alec was going to argue to stay with him anyway.

"You already know what I'm gonna say," Alec said after a moment with a knowing smile, practically reading his mind.

"I don't like it-"

"But we need to find Sam," Alec cut in and Dean nodded in agreement.

They sat there for a little while until Alec rested against him just a little more. Dean looked down and saw his eyes were closed and he was breathing a little slower in sleep. Dean settled in; he would let Alec rest a little before they started their search.

Dean wouldn't actually sleep; he had to be on watch just in case the Wendigo came back to finish them off. He knew he needed to be at his best tomorrow to take on the monster, but he wasn't going to let Alec lose sleep because of it. He would just have to push through his exhaustion and do his job. They would find Sam tomorrow, he would be sure of that.

* * *

 _More soon..._


	3. Chapter 3

Dean waited until the sun started rising before he decided it was time to get moving. Alec had gotten a few hours of sleep and now it was time to find Sam. Alec had slept leaning against him, and even though his butt fell asleep, it was warmer with them sharing body heat.

Dean had spent most of the time trying to come up with a way to find Sam and take out the Wendigo, while at the same time, making sure Alec kept breathing. He'd almost dozed off a few times, but he managed to shake himself awake each time.

"Alec," Dean whispered, nudging his little brother to try and get him to wake up by himself. He didn't; Alec always made things more difficult than they needed to be. Dean shook him a little more, and Alec kind of grumbled back but then snuggled against him a little more to get comfortable again.

"Alec," Dean said louder, and Alec finally sort of jumped awake.

"Wha'?" Alec slurred, blinking bleary eyes up at him.

"We gotta get moving and find Sam," Dean said. He slowly started to move so get himself up, but he kept his hands on Alec's shoulders to keep him steady. Alec pressed a hand against his ribs as he tried to stretch out the kinks from sleeping the way he had. "How're you feeling?" Dean asked once he was on his feet.

"'M alright…" Alec muttered. He held his hand up so Dean could help him. Dean grabbed his hand and pulled him up, and then wrapped his arm around Alec's waist when he wavered. "Oh man, I'm dizzy…" Alec admitted when he was standing.

Dean started second guessing bringing Alec with him to look for Sam. He couldn't exactly leave him by himself here, but he could take him back to the car…

"I'm alright, I just needed to adjust," Alec said quickly, seeing the look on his face.

"Alright…" Dean said, but he was still doubtful. Alec could get hurt even more hunting like this, but he didn't have many options. But he did have some breakfast for them, so that was something. Dean went to the duffle bags and looked for the food. He started grumbling when all he found were granola bars. He should have never let Sam be in charge of packing the food.

"So where do we start?" Alec asked after a moment. Dean tossed him one of the granola bars and he was glad to see Alec was able to catch it easily. At least he still had his reflexes.

Dean bit off about half of his bar, and then said around his mouthful, "There were some tracks leading away from the rock wall. Hopefully, the tracks will lead us right to where we need to go…"

"But that's not likely, cause we have the worst luck," Alec finished with a smile.

"That's right," Dean replied, also smiling. He lightly ruffled Alec's hair as they slowly started for the rock walk. "We're a cursed family, kiddo. And you're part of this family now, so you've got the curse."

"Man, I wish you guys would've told me that before I decided to stay," Alec teased. "I could've been adopted by a family that might've had some luck."

Dean chuckled, but then he had to reach out and catch Alec as he stumbled.

Alec had to take a second, and then he said with a light laugh, "Almost dying really takes it outta ya…"

"I hear ya," Dean agreed as they started moving again. "But the plan is, find Sam, kill the Wendigo, and then get back to the car and head to the closest hospital."

"Everything sounds great, except the hospital. Unless, it's for Sam of course, then it's fine," Alec said.

"For you too," Dean replied casually. He was now used to arguing with Alec about going to the hospital and he knew he could get Alec to go eventually. "Little brothers who try to check out on you get an automatic trip to the hospital."

"I feel fine," Alec argued, but he stumbled again, completely ruining his argument. He shook his head a little, knowing he was going to lose this one. He looked back up at Dean and held up one finger and said, "No overnight stay and I mean it."

Dean couldn't help chuckling, "Alright, we'll see."

"No 'we'll see'," Alec said with a scowl. "That just means we'll do whatever you say."

"Damn straight," Dean said, shooting a smile over to Alec. He just glared back.

They were at the rock wall now and Dean crouched down to look at the tracks. Alec leaned against the wall, but he seemed to be looking in the direction that the tracks led. There was no way to tell how far the tracks went or if they even went all the way to where the Wendigo was.

Dean stayed crouched down for just a moment longer before he stood. He motioned for Alec to stay where he was while he went back for their bags. He rearranged some of their things, trying to be sneaky, and then he brought all three bags back to the wall.

Alec immediately held out his hand to take one of the bags, and instead of arguing, Dean gave him the lightest bag. Alec scowled like he knew what Dean was doing, but he didn't say anything. Dean shouldered the other two bags and got the flare guns out before they started following the tracks.

* * *

Alec was dragging. He wasn't kidding when he said that almost dying really took it out of him. Going back to the car had sounded wonderful, but he wasn't leaving Sam and Dean. Sam had gotten taken by the monster for cryin' out loud; there was no way he was giving up now.

"Dammit," Dean muttered. They had been following the trail all day; the sun was setting now and it was getting harder to see.

"'S to the left a little," Alec mumbled. He was almost slurring when he spoke, so he hadn't been saying much. He had been practically walking like a drunk and now he was going to start talking like a drunk too. But he could still see just fine.

"Thanks," Dean said, moving to the left a little and picking up the trail again.

Alec just nodded and slowly followed behind Dean. He knew he was going to be less than useless when they actually found the Wendigo, but maybe he could protect Sam at least.

Dean stopped again a few minutes later and looked around. "Damn," he breathed out. It was almost completely dark now and Alec didn't know what the plan was going to be. He knew that Dean had wanted to find Sam today, but Alec hadn't been able to move as fast as he should have been. He was slowing everything down.

Dean suddenly looked him over, and then set down the two duffle bags he was carrying.

"I can keep going," Alec immediately protested, refusing to set his bag down.

"We're just taking a break," Dean said as he grabbed Alec's bag and put it next to the others. "I'm as tired as you are kiddo." Dean sat on the ground with his elbows resting on his knees.

"Just five minutes, ok?" Alec said, still standing.

"Fine," Dean relented and Alec finally sat down next to his older brother.

It felt so good to sit down; he was afraid he would never get back up. He was worried that Dean would have the same problem. Then they would never get to Sam.

"You think Sam's ok?" Alec asked after just a moment. He'd been trying to keep his worry down and focus on walking, but now they weren't walking anymore. Sam had a broken leg and he'd been taken by a man eating monster. There was definitely a reason to worry.

"Yeah I think he'll be ok…" Dean replied. "We've been in this situation before, and we've made it out alright…"

"What happened the last time you hunted one of these?" Alec asked curiously.

"I was actually taken by the Wendigo and Sam had to find me," Dean said quietly.

"These things suck," Alec said after a minute. "I vote that we don't hunt another one for a while."

Dean chuckled and bumped against Alec's shoulder with his own, "I definitely agree with you there."

They rested for just a few minutes more, and then Dean slowly got to his feet. Alec held out his hand and Dean helped him up. He was dizzy again, but Dean kept him steady while he adjusted. Alec tried to take a deep breath to reorient himself, but it wasn't all that deep. His ribs were protesting the extra movement and his lungs weren't expanding like they were supposed to. His breaths were a lot shorter than usual. He actually probably needed to see a doctor after all this was over.

He looked around for a minute, and even though it was dark, he could see what was around them. So far, the Wendigo had followed the lake. The water was on their right side and the trees were on their left. Alec looked ahead to see where they would be walking next and almost groaned at the hill they had to climb.

"You ready to keep going?" Dean asked softly.

He just nodded back, and they slowly started moving again. Dean relied on him a lot more this time around, because he could see in the dark and he could follow the trail. They were both stumbling when they reached the hill; they were exhausted from lack of sleep and from everything that had happened the day before.

They were almost to the top of the hill when the tracks disappeared.

"I lost 'em," Alec muttered, slightly breathless and scanning the ground to pick them up again.

Dean scanned the ground too, but neither of them could see any trace of where the Wendigo had taken Sam.

Alec started to head to the edge of the hill where it dropped off just to see what was on the other side.

"Alec, be careful," Dean said when he saw how close to the edge he was.

Alec waved him off and leaned out further over the side. Dean came up beside him and put a hand against his chest to hold him back. But Alec saw what could give them hope of finding Sam again.

"Look," Alec pointed down a ways to where a trail might be. "That could be something, right?"

"I can't see that Alec," Dean said slowly.

"Well it looks like there might be a trail down there," Alec said. "There might be a cave or something down there, don't you think?"

"We're gonna practically kill ourselves gettin' down there…" Dean replied.

"But there's a chance," Alec prodded. He didn't know why, but he really thought that Sam could be down there.

"Alright," Dean finally agreed. "We'll check it out."

Alec couldn't help his smile as he looked for a safe way to start out. It was going to be a nightmare going down since he wasn't moving like he was used to and he'd have to tell Dean where to step. It was going to be slow and painful, but Alec couldn't ignore his feeling.

* * *

Sam hurt all over, but the most pain was coming from his leg. It was throbbing in time to the beat of his heart and his eyes started to tear up with the pain. He blinked them away and tried to focus on what was going on, where he was, and what had happened.

His arms were killing him and he figured out that he was tied up, just like how he'd found Dean with the last Wendigo. It was dark where he was, so he couldn't really tell what was what.

The last thing he remembered was the Wendigo coming into their camp. It'd taken out Dean and Alec, and then it had gone for him. He didn't remember anything after that. It must have knocked him out and drug him to its camp.

"You alright?" A voice suddenly breathed in the dark. Sam tried to turn to see who it was, but he could only catch a glimpse of another man near him.

"Yeah…" Sam replied slowly.

"What's your name?" The man asked. His voice was barely above a whisper and it sounded like he hadn't spoken in a long time.

"Sam. What's yours?"

"Zach," he replied.

"Wait, Zach Peters?" Sam questioned in surprise.

"Yeah, how'd you know?" Zach asked curiously.

"Me and my brothers came out here to find what took you…" Sam slowly explained.

"Well, looks like you found it," Zach replied with a light chuckle.

"How are you still alive? You were taken a while ago, right?"

"Yeah, but I escaped for a while. I got lost though and started walking in circles, and then this thing got me again." Zach answered. "You said you and your brothers came out here to find this thing? Why?"

"It's kinda what we do…" Sam hedged. "But they'll be looking for me, and I know they'll find me."

"Even if they do find us, it won't really matter," Zach said in defeat. "This thing is way too fast. It'll catch us and then kill us. It was munchin' on one of the campers, Paul I think, but he's almost completely gone now…"

"Zach, we can't give up," Sam tried to encourage. "We know how to kill this thing…we've done it before."

"You have?" Zach asked, sounding just a little more hopeful than he had a moment ago.

"Yeah, and my brothers are going to find us. They'll get us out of here," Sam replied. He was really just hoping that his brothers were ok. He remembered that Alec had been thrown in the lake, unconscious, and he had no idea if Dean would have gotten to him in time. He couldn't think about that right now though, he had to try and come up with a way to escape, just to help his brothers out a little.

It was quiet for a minute, and then Zach asked, "Who patched up your leg?"

"My brother Alec," Sam replied, he tried to pull on the ropes around his hands, but they were on really tight. And even when he was trying to keep his brothers out of his thoughts, they were brought up again.

"He did a good job it looks like," Zach muttered. "Where'd he learn how to do that?"

"He…um, he was in the military," Sam lied. He couldn't just come out and say the truth to this stranger. "What'd you do before you got caught up in all of this?" Sam asked to change the subject.

"Me and my brother are Doctors. We have a clinic near my house," Zach replied.

"Well, when we get out of this, you think your brother would be up for some patients," Sam asked with a small smile.

"He better be," Zach said with a chuckle. "If your brothers get us out of here, you guys are welcome to whatever you want."

"Oh they'll get us out," Sam replied without a doubt in his mind. He started to say something else, but then stopped at the sound of footsteps.

"You hear that?" Zach whispered.

Sam didn't answer; all of his attention was to where he'd heard the footsteps. It was too dark for him to see and as soon as Zach had whispered, the footsteps had disappeared.

"Sam?" Dean suddenly whispered and Sam's heart jumped with joy.

"Dean!" Sam whispered back. He didn't know if the Wendigo was around here or not, but it was best to stay on the safe side.

"You were right," Dean whispered, but it sounded like he was talking to someone else.

"Is Alec with you?" Sam asked in concern.

"Yeah, he's here. We're on our way," Dean replied.

It was another few seconds before Sam could see two people slowly walking towards him. It was so dark that he could hardly make out any details. But then they were in front of him and he could see their smiles.

"'S good to see ya Sammy," Dean said, pulling out a knife and cutting the rope around his hands. Sam couldn't see Alec anymore and he expected Alec was cutting Zach down.

"How'd you guys find me?" Sam asked as Dean helped him to the ground.

"Alec," Dean said in reply. And really that's all he needed to say; Sam should've guess that in the first place. "How's the leg?"

"Hurts," Sam answered. "Sooner we get out of here, the better."

"I know…Do you know if it's here?"

"I haven't seen it…" Sam mumbled.

"The cave goes back a ways," Zach suddenly said. "It's probably back there because I haven't seen it leave."

"Alright," Dean said after a moment. "I'll go back there and see."

"You mean, _we'll_ go back there," Alec immediately cut in.

"No, I mean _I'll_ ," Dean argued.

"It's gonna be hard to find it considering you can't see in the dark," Alec pointed out. "I'd go by myself, but I think you'd throw a fit."

"You're not going by yourself," Sam and Dean said at the same time.

"Then neither is Dean," Alec hissed.

"Fine," Dean said through clenched teeth. He handed Sam one of the flare guns, and then stood.

"Be careful, alright?" Sam said.

"We will," Dean replied. He started to turn, with Alec close beside him. "We'll be back in a minute."

* * *

 _More soon..._


	4. Chapter 4

Dean and Alec were both completely silent as they made their way through the cave. It was pitch black for Dean, but Alec steered him through; his arm brushed against his to remain contact, and when Dean was about to hit the wall, Alec would pull on his sleeve to redirect him.

He had no idea how he was going to kill this thing since he wouldn't be able to see it. They really needed flashlights, but that would give them away. They probably wouldn't be able to actually sneak up on the thing anyway, but it couldn't hurt to try. Alec could still see, and Dean trusted that Alec could get the job done.

Alec suddenly pulled him to a stop and tapped on the back of his hand. It took him a minute to realize that he was tapping Morse Code, but he managed to pick up that Alec was asking him if he knew Morse Code.

Dean grabbed Alec's hand and tapped back 'are you kidding?'

Alec barely breathed out a huff of a laugh and tapped back, 'no.'

'yes I know Morse Code,' Dean tapped in reply.

'obviously.' And Dean could just imagine the eye roll that Alec just did. 'it's up ahead, but looking at us.'

Dean tried to squint to where Alec could be talking about, but he still didn't see anything. Dean tapped, 'can you shoot it?'

'closer,' Alec replied.

Dean thought that was probably a good idea, even though he couldn't see the Wendigo. But flare guns weren't extremely accurate since they were supposed to be for signaling things and not taking aim and killing monsters. They really only had one shot at a surprise attack, and the thing was already looking at them; this was going to be challenging.

Alec tugged on his sleeve to get him moving again, and Dean stayed pressed against his arm. He didn't want to walk right into the Wendigo; that would be stupid.

Alec stopped him again and he felt him raise his arm up to aim. Dean practically held his breath as he waited for just a second for Alec to shoot, but he never got the shot off. Dean heard a slight whoosh of air as the Wendigo bolted away from them, and further into the cave. He expected Alec to start pulling him along again, but they both remained motionless.

"I think there's another way out of here," Alec suddenly said, his voice urgent.

"Why?" Dean asked in confusion. He hadn't had any clue that that was the case, but Alec must have picked something up.

"The air smells a little fresher down that way…" Alec muttered in thought. "C'mon, we need to get back to Sam. It might be circling around."

Whether Alec was right or not, didn't matter; Dean wasn't risking Sam. He nudged Alec to lead the way, and they went a lot faster on the way back. They were almost jogging even though that was a very dangerous way to travel through the dark cave.

It didn't take them as long as Dean thought it would to get back to Sam.

"What's going on?" Sam asked in confusion when he heard them come back.

"I think it's circling around," Alec said, slightly breathless.

Dean suddenly turned to where he thought the entrance was; he had a feeling that the Wendigo was back. It was confirmed a second later when the thing kind of roared. They didn't have any time to move before it blew through the cave. He did hear Alec move, and he hoped he was going to Sam to help protect him.

Dean still couldn't see anything, but he heard Alec grunt, and then hit something with a thud. Dean was lifted off of his feet a second later, and he felt claws tear into his side before he hit the side of the cave. The flare gun fell out of his hand when he hit the wall and Dean had no idea where it was now.

The air in his lungs left him, but he quickly rolled away from where he thought the threat was.

The clouds that had been covering the moon suddenly shifted and Dean could now make out the outline of the Wendigo. It was slowly moving towards him and he scooted himself back to try and get away from it.

"Dean!" Sam shouted, drawing Dean and the Wendigo's attention.

Sam tossed his flare gun to Dean and he easily caught it. He didn't waste any time; he shifted his aim, and then fired. The flare lit up the entire cave, and then hit the Wendigo dead in the chest. The monster screeched and tried to move, but it was already catching fire. In seconds the thing was completely gone, covering them in darkness again.

"Another one bites the dust," Dean said with a smirk once it was over.

"Are you serious?" Sam asked, and Dean could just imagine his bitch face right now.

"Yeah I'm serious," Dean replied with a pained laugh. His side was burning slightly where the claws had ripped through his skin. "I killed it didn't I?" Dean asked in amusement.

"You alright?" Sam asked instead of answering.

"Yeah, just gazed me…" Dean said, even though it was a lie. He could already feel his blood soaking through his shirt.

A bright light suddenly sliced through the darkness, and Dean saw that another guy was sitting on the ground, holding a flashlight.

"Found my flashlight," the man said happily. He held it out to Dean after just a second, and Dean gladly took it.

He pointed the light around the cave until he saw Alec over by the wall, trying to push himself up. Dean ran over to him and helped him sit up.

"You alright?" Dean asked in concern.

"Yeah," Alec barely breathed out. "Got the air knocked outta me, and then couldn't catch my breath…" He was still breathing shallowly, and now that the threat was gone, Dean couldn't wait to get his brothers to the hospital.

He helped Alec to his feet, but then Alec took over. Dean didn't stray far from him though, as they both walked back to Sam and whoever that other guy was.

"What's your name?" Dean asked once they were all back together.

"Zach. Are you Alec or…" Zack asked.

"Dean," he answered, then he pointed to Alec, "That's Alec."

"It might just be the light, but you two look a lot alike," Zach said with a smile.

"Well, we're pretty much identical, but he's younger," Dean replied, easily returning the smile. "Can you walk?"

"I don't know, probably," Zach said honestly. "I've been here for a while so I haven't eaten or drank much…"

"I'll be right back," Dean said. He ran outside and up the hill just a little to where he and Alec had stowed their bags. He grabbed all three of them before he ran back to the cave. He got a bottle of water out and handed it to Zach. "Drink slowly," Dean cautioned.

"Thanks," Zach replied, taking the bottle of water and taking a sip. Dean got out one of the awful granola bars and gave him one of those too. He moved back to Sam after that and gave him the same things.

"Catch," Dean warned before he tossed Alec a granola bar. Alec tried to catch it, but he bobbled it and it fell to the ground. "Oops, sorry. Bad throw," Dean quickly covered, getting up and grabbing the dropped bar. He handed it to Alec this time and he smiled just a little. Alec looked like he was about to apologize, but Dean ruffled his hair before he could.

"What's the plan?" Sam asked after a moment.

"We need to get back to the car, and then it's straight to the hospital," Dean replied. He waited for Alec to argue, but he never did. He shot him a quick look before he focused back on Sam.

"Zach says he has a clinic," Sam said.

"I do," Zach confirmed. "Me and my brother run it and you guys are more than welcome."

"Can you fix up Sam's leg?" Dean asked.

Zach nodded, "Yeah, we'll just put a cast on it and make sure there aren't any bone fragments. Alec already did most of the work."

"Is it close?" Dean asked.

"It's near my house, but I don't know how far we are from there…" Zach replied.

"Alright, we'll still go to the car first, but then we'll go to your clinic. We like to keep a low profile so…"

"Don't worry about it," Zach easily said back.

"Are we going straight to the car or sleeping first?" Alec asked after a moment. He sounded really tired, but Dean wanted to get him and Sam fixed up before they got to rest.

"We're gonna go as far as we can," Dean finally answered. "And if we can't go anymore, then we'll sleep."

"Ok," Alec mumbled. He went over and helped Zach to his feet while Dean helped Sam.

It'd taken a long time for him and Alec to make it down the hill, but climbing up was going to be impossible. There was a little trail in some spots, but most of this time it was loose rocks and steep drops. Dean had no idea how he was going to get Sam up there, but at least they had a flashlight this time.

"You're bleeding," Alec suddenly said quietly before Dean could start up the hill.

"What?" Dean asked in surprise.

"You're bleeding," Alec repeated. "I can smell it, so don't even bother lying…"

Dean couldn't stop his glare at his little brother; he'd ratted him out.

"Dean!" Sam said in exasperation.

"It's not that bad," Dean defended, but Alec huffed in disbelief. "I'll take care of it once we get up the hill."

"No," Alec instantly replied. It was the first time that Alec had just outright refused to do something. If he didn't want to do it, he usually hedged or talked his way out of it; he never really said a flat-out no.

"Yes," Dean argued.

"No."

Alec lifted his chin defiantly and Dean heard Sam snicker. Dean was about ready to start up the hill anyway, but Alec stopped him.

"Let me just stitch it up real quick, and then we can try to get ourselves killed some other way…" Alec tried to reason.

Dean hesitated for one more minute before he relented. He helped Sam to the ground, and then turned to Alec. He stripped off his layers and sat in front of Alec without any arguing. If he wanted Alec to get taken care of, he would have to learn to do the same.

Alec grabbed the first aid kit and their rubbing alcohol out of one of the bags. Zach sat on the ground near them and Dean passed him the flashlight so he could hold it for Alec.

"This is gonna hurt," Alec warned. Dean just took a deep breath and nodded for Alec to go ahead. Alec poured the rubbing alcohol onto the gashes and Dean couldn't stop his hiss of pain. He knew this was the best way to keep away infection, but it still hurt.

"Son of a bitch…" Dean growled after a moment.

"Sorry," Alec muttered as he cleaned up the wounds.

"'S ok…" Dean replied through clenched teeth.

Alec got their suture kit out, and then put in the stitches as gently as he could. They were neat and tidy as usual; Alec's stitches would always amaze him. They were way better than what the doctors could do and better even, than Sam and Dean's stitches. Alec had laughed when he'd told him that and had brushed it off saying there was no room for error.

Zach let out an impressed whistle at seeing the stitches that Alec put in. "Wow! Were you a medic in the military?"

Alec and Dean both shot him looks of confusion. But Alec looked over at Sam, and then said easily, "Yeah, I was a medic for a while."

"Well, those look great," Zach said. "If you're looking for a job, we could use another person at the clinic."

Alec chuckled as he ran his fingers lightly over the stitches to make sure none of them were messed up and said, "Thanks, but I've got enough work with these two…"

Zach laughed, "Fair enough, but the offer's open if you want it."

Alec started to reply, but started coughing instead. It was a rough cough, with a slightly wet sound that had Dean leaning forward to rub Alec's back. Alec was having trouble catching his breath and Zach started to move closer.

"I'm alright," Alec whispered, waving Zach off and leaning away from Dean's touch. He grabbed some gauze and taped it against Dean's side, but his breathing was still shallow and ragged. He stood up before Dean could say anything else and moved to help Sam up.

Dean let them get a head start up the hill, while he hung back with Zach. He had to wait a few minutes before he was satisfied that Alec wouldn't overhear him.

"Have you ever dealt with someone almost drowning?" Dean asked in a whisper, slowly getting to his feet.

Zach nodded slowly, "Yeah, we've had a couple cases. Why do you ask?"

"Alec nearly drowned two nights ago…" Dean replied softly, looking up to where he could barely make out Sam and Alec's outlines. Just talking about this was making him feel sick…

"That's why he's having some trouble breathing," Zach said. "How long was he down for?"

Dean shrugged and answered, "I don't know…a while…"

"Alright, we'll get him fixed up when we get back," Zach reassured. "We'll keep an eye on him and we'll fix Sam up too. You guys can have whatever you need. You saved my life and I don't know how I can repay you."

"Thanks," Dean replied sincerely. He grabbed the bags and started walking with Zach towards the hill. "And you don't need to repay us. We're just glad we could help."

"Sam said you guys were out here looking for this thing on purpose…" Zach said slowly.

Dean nodded, "Yeah…and I'd say this would sound crazy, but I'm hopin' you're gonna believe me…"

"Well, I was kidnapped by some kind of superhuman monster so…" Zach trailed off with a small smile.

Dean chuckled, "True. The thing that kidnapped you was called a Wendigo. It was human at one time, but now it's this. Me and my brothers are hunters. We go after these things and kill them."

"Really?" Zach asked, but he sounded intrigued. It really helped that he'd already seen proof that these things were real.

"Yeah," Dean replied honestly.

"Do you guys get paid to do this?" Zach asked after a moment.

"No…kinda one of the reasons we like to keep a low profile. We don't get along too well with the cops," Dean said.

"Yeah, this is a little hard to explain," Zach replied. "How'd you guys become hunters?"

"Kind of a long story…" Dean hedged.

Zach immediately backed off, "Sorry, I don't mean to pry…talking just helps pass the time. Keeps my mind off of other things…"

"It's ok," Dean replied. For some reason, he thought Zach was a cool guy. He'd only known him for a few minutes, but that was enough to know. "You like cars?" Dean suddenly asked.

Zach smiled and nodded, "Yeah, I like cars."

"Just wait until you see my Baby," Dean said, his eyes lighting up in excitement. "'67 Chevy Impala."

Zach let out another impressed whistle, "Sound like a beauty!"

"Oh she is!" Dean replied. Yeah, Zach was ok in his book. They talked cars the rest of the way up the hill.

* * *

"Dean!" Sam yelled from the top of the hill.

"Yeah?" Dean called back, but he still sounded far away.

Sam had to take a calming breath before he said, "Alec just collapsed!"

"Shit…" Sam heard Dean mutter.

Alec had been nearly gasping for air by the time they had reached the top, but he refused to tell Sam what was wrong. Alec had been supporting most of Sam's weight when his breath had suddenly hitched, and then his legs had collapsed. Sam had gone down with him, jarring his broken leg. It'd taken him a minute to catch his own breath before he yelled for Dean.

He was right next to Alec and he could see his chest rise and fall with his shallow breathing. Sam didn't know what was going on with him, but suddenly collapsing wasn't good.

Dean appeared a few minutes later with Zach close behind him. "What happened?"

"He wasn't really breathing right, and then when we got to the top, he collapsed," Sam explained in a rush. "What happened to him?"

Dean hesitated in answering, but then said, "He almost drowned…"

"What?!"

Dean reached out and checked Alec's pulse while Zach checked Sam's leg. "I woke up and both of you were gone. There were ripples in the lake and I though it could've been one of you…and it was Alec. I did CPR, but it took a long time…" Dean said, guilt leaking into his voice.

"Hey, you got him back," Sam reassured. Zach moved from Sam's leg over to Alec. He put his ear against Alec's chest and listened for a minute, and then gently felt his ribs.

"Don't bring it up…when he wakes up…" Dean slowly said. "I don't think he wants to talk about it…"

"Ok," Sam replied softly.

"You think he's ok?" Dean asked Zach after a few minutes.

Zach nodded, "I think he just overexerted himself…"

Alec's eyes opened a crack, and then he groaned a little.

"Hey kiddo," Dean murmured softly.

Alec's eyes flew open and he suddenly shot up and blurred a few feet away, ready to fight.

"Hey! Hey, it's ok! It's just us," Dean reassured, raising his hands up in surrender. Sam shot a look over to Zach and saw that he hadn't missed Alec moving faster than he could see. He looked confused as to how Alec had moved so fast, but so far he didn't look angry or anything. "You're alright," Dean said softly. "You're in the woods and we were hunting…"

Alec stayed ready to fight for a minute more, and then he finally relaxed. He was only relaxed for a second though; his eyes suddenly snapped over to Sam in concern. "Sam! I'm so sorry! Are you ok?"

"I'm fine," Sam reassured quickly. He didn't want to make Alec worry any more than he already was.

Alec still looked guilty though, and he refused to even move near him. Dean patted Sam's good leg before he got up and slowly walked over to Alec. He could barely hear Dean murmur something as he walked closer, but he knew Alec could hear him. Dean talked to him for a minute, and then they were both walking back over to Sam and Zach.

Dean grabbed the bags and helped Sam back to his feet, or foot more accurately, and then they started hobbling forward again. Alec hung back with Zach, and even though Dean had told him not to bring it up, he still wanted to talk to Alec about what was going on. He could tell that it had really affected Alec, and more than just physically. But he would have to wait to talk to Alec until he was ready. He didn't want to push his little brother.

"Man, I'm hungry," Dean muttered after they had walked for a while. The silence must have been starting to wear on him.

"There's some foo-"

"Sam, don't even say that there's food in the bags. That's not food," Dean cut in with a small smile.

"Yes it is," Sam argued. "They're enough to keep you going, and they're quick to eat."

"No," Dean quickly refuted. "They taste like dirt and they definitely do not fill you up."

"How do you know what dirt tastes like?" Sam asked in amusement.

"I'm just guessing," Dean replied. "But right after we get fixed up, we're getting food. Real food."

"Ok," Sam agreed with a light laugh.

"And you're not allowed to pack food anymore," Dean said, making sure there was no room for argument.

Sam chuckled, "Ok Dean, whatever you say."

* * *

Alec hung back and slowly walked with Zach. He felt terrible; he was exhausted and he was sore, but he also felt terrible for failing Sam. He'd been the only thing keeping Sam on his feet, and he'd gone and passed out. And on top of all of that, he'd freaked out when he had woken up, and now he wasn't sure if Zach knew what he was or not.

So far, Zach hadn't said anything about it, but Alec knew it was only a matter of time. He just hoped that Zach and his brother would still help Sam and Dean before they decided he was a freak.

He knew he would mess this up. They had found someone that could actually help them, and now there was no telling what he would do. Transgenics were monsters in the public's eyes, and Alec had probably ruined this again.

He shouldn't have freaked out like he had, but he hadn't recognized Zach's voice right away. He'd heard Dean, but he just didn't connect the pieces in time. So, he freaked out and blurred in front of an ordinary.

"How ya doin'?" Zach suddenly asked quietly.

"I'm alright," Alec replied casually.

Zach seemed like he wanted to ask him something, but he probably didn't know how to bring it up. Alec wasn't about to help him out. Whatever he wanted to ask, was probably going to be something that Alec couldn't answer.

Zach took a deep breath and said, "I don't know how to ask this…"

Alec stopped to face him, there was no getting around this anyway, "You can go ahead and say it."

"…Do you have PTSD?" Zach asked quietly.

Alec raised his eyebrows in surprise; he hadn't been expecting that one.

"I'm sorry," Zach quickly apologized. "I don't mean to pry and I know we hardly know each other…"

"I don't know," Alec suddenly answered. "Probably…"

"You didn't know where you were when you woke up," Zach stated to explain how he had come to this conclusion. "Is that common?"

Alec rubbed the back of his neck where his barcode was, and then finally said, "Yeah…it happens some…"

Zach looked uncomfortable again, and then he said, "I don't know much about what happened in Seattle, but I've seen a few news reports…about people who could move faster than others…"

Alec hung his head, knowing this was it; Zach knew.

"Are you…are you a transgenic?" Zach asked softly, turning his head a little to try and meet Alec's eyes.

Alec looked up and practically begged, "Please, just help Sam and Dean, and then we'll leave, ok? They aren't transgenics, but I am. And if you don't want to help, just please don't call the cops. I swear I won't hurt you."

"Whoa, easy Alec," Zach said. "I don't know much about transgenics, but from what I've seen, you're not a bad guy. You helped save my life, and I will be helping you and your brothers."

Alec glanced up at him in disbelief; Zach still wanted to help them. That wasn't how this usually worked for him. He was used to people being scared of what he was.

"I just saw you move so fast earlier and I was curious," Zach tried to explain. "Seattle made national news, but I never imagined it was real. I'm sorry..."

"It's ok," Alec replied. "It probably would have come out sooner or later anyway."

"I guess we should catch up to your brothers," Zach said after a minute.

"Yeah," Alec agreed. "They're getting pretty far ahead…"

They started to speed up a little, but Alec was still wary of Zach. He'd seemed ok with Alec being a transgenic, but Alec had never been that lucky before. He was just going to keep an eye out before he got too comfortable. But he did have a little hope that maybe Zach really would be ok with him being a transgenic. That would be one more person on his side.

* * *

 _Hope you guys still like it...more soon..._


	5. Chapter 5

"Oh Baby, I missed you," Dean said lovingly as his beautiful car came into view. They were all exhausted from walking through the woods for hours. It had been dark when they had left the cave, and now it was almost evening again.

Dean had helped Sam walk the entire way, but Sam was practically out on his feet he was so tired. About halfway through, Zach had to start helping Alec, who had just gotten worse as time went on. He was coughing a lot more now and he could hardly support his own weight. Dean was exhausted too, and he knew Zach was even worse off since he'd been with the Wendigo even longer. They all were relieved to see the Impala come into view.

Dean got Sam into the passenger seat, and then helped Zach get Alec in. Dean got into the driver's seat and just savored the feeling of being back home. He loved his Baby and just being back was making him feel better.

He took a deep breath after a moment, and then quietly asked Zach, "Do you know how to get to your clinic from here?"

"Yeah, it's just a few minutes from here," Zach replied. "Just turn right onto the highway, and then it'll be the first building on the left."

"Ok," Dean said, putting his car in reverse and getting back onto the highway. He drove fairly slow because he didn't want to miss it, and because he was tired and the last thing they needed was for him to wreck.

It turned out to be a fifteen minute drive from where they were to the clinic. There were still lights on, which was a good sign; it was getting close to closing time for other places.

"Looks like Chris is still here," Zach said as Dean pulled into the parking lot.

"We'll go in real quick," Dean said to Sam and Alec. "You two stay here." Alec rolled his head on the back of the seat to meet Dean's gaze and Sam nodded his approval. Dean got out at the same time as Zach and followed him to the front door.

The clinic was really nice and Dean was impressed; there was a small waiting area with some chairs and sofas around the room and it looked like a pretty chill place to get your doctoring done. Zach walked straight back though, and down the hallway leading to five more rooms. Zach ignored four of the rooms and headed to the last one on the right.

The door was partially open, but Zach lightly knocked anyway. A man who looked slightly older than Zach and who wore glasses looked up at the knock, and then his mouth opened in shock.

"Zach?" The man who must have been Chris asked in disbelief. Zach nodded and Chris stood and quickly went to his brother. He grabbed Zach and pulled him in for a tight hug. Seeing them made Dean want to get his own brothers, but he couldn't rush them. Chris pulled back from the hug but kept his hands on Zach's shoulders and asked, "What happened?!"

"I'll explain everything to you later, right now my new friends need some help," Zach said with a look to Dean.

"Dean," Dean said, holding his hand out and shaking Chris's hand.

"Chris," he replied and then asked, "New friends?"

"His brothers are still in the car. They all three saved me, killed the monster, and need some help," Zach summed up quickly. "Now, no more questions until we help them."

"Fine," Chris grumbled, leading the way out of the room.

Dean let him lead until they got outside, then he ran ahead and opened Sam's door. He leaned in and asked, "How ya guys doin'?"

Sam turned a little to look back at Alec, who actually looked miserable in the backseat, and then turned back to Dean and mumbled, "I think we're about the same…"

"Alright, well, let's get inside," Dean replied, helping Sam out of the car. He saw Alec start to move to his door and push himself up. Chris hovered nearby, but he waited until Alec was completely out of the car. "This is Sam and that's Alec," Dean introduced to Chris.

"I'm Chris," he replied. He had to move fast a second later when Alec started to crumble. He caught him just in time, and then looped Alec's arm over his shoulders. "Looks like you guys have had a rough day."

"Nah, we've had a great camping trip," Alec muttered sarcastically.

Chris chuckled as they all started to move back inside. He led them past all of the rooms and through another set of doors to a darker room.

He turned on the lights to reveal a table with an x-ray machine over it. "Looks like we have a broken leg, any other bones possibly broken?" Chis asked, helping Alec into a chair.

"Broken ribs," Dean replied, pointing to Alec.

"He's also had trouble breathing," Zach quietly threw in.

"What about you? Anything hurt?" Chris asked, looking at his brother.

"No, but I'll need some fluids…but I really need to call Lauren…" Zach replied.

"Good idea," Chris said, "She'll be relieved to hear from you."

Zach nodded, and then asked, "Do you need my help before I call her? She's probably going to come get me, especially if she has the kids."

"You can go ahead and call her, I think I've got this," Chris said with a small smile.

Zach couldn't hide his smile now. He shot a reassuring look to Dean, and then left the room. Chris laughed to himself as he went to Sam and Dean, and then helped Sam onto the table.

"Can you and Alec go to the next room over while I get some pictures of Sam's leg?" Chris asked Dean, who nodded back.

"C'mon kiddo," Dean said, helping Alec to his feet again and slowly walking out of the room. They went to the room next door and Dean put Alec in the squishy looking chair. They didn't say anything as they waited for Chris to come back for them. Alec looked too tired to talk anyway.

Dean couldn't tell how much time had passed before Chris helped Sam into their room, and then took Alec with him.

"This is a pretty nice place, huh?" Sam said after they had sat in silence for a few minutes.

Dean nodded his agreement and then asked, "What do you think of Chris?"

"He's a lot like Zach, just quieter," Sam replied. "He seems pretty chill anyway…"

"Yeah, that's what I was thinking," Dean said. "It's nice that we don't have to go to a real hospital."

"Yeah, Alec would've argued about that," Sam said with a small smile.

Dean huffed out a laugh and said, "Oh, we've already had that argument."

That made Sam chuckle a little, but he didn't say anything else because Chris and Alec came back into the room a moment later.

"We're going to move to one more room, and then we won't be moving for a while," Chris reassured. Dean helped Sam to his feet again and followed Chris and Alec out of the room. "I'm going to put a chest tube in Alec and get him on oxygen, and then I'm going to get a cast on Sam's leg," Chris explained as he led them down the hall.

"What's the chest tube for?" Dean asked.

"There's fluid in his lungs and the chest tube will drain it out so he can breathe easier," Chris explained. "The oxygen should also help, but I don't want this to get worse than it already is."

Dean nodded his ok; he was just glad that Chris knew what to do to help them.

Chris sat Alec in a chair and he motioned for Dean to get Sam on the examination table. He made up three IV bags and put Alec on one and Sam on another one. He pulled a chair over for Dean, and then motioned for him to roll up his sleeve. Dean decided not to argue and let Chris put the needle in his arm and put the IV bag on a pole next to him.

He got a few things together before he went back to Alec and helped him out of his shirt. He started to bring a shot over to him but Alec said quietly, "You shouldn't waste that on me…"

"It should help with the pain," Chris tried to explain.

Alec shook his head, "It won't be strong enough, so you shouldn't even bother."

Chris looked to Dean to see if he could talk some sense into his little brother. Dean really wished that he could, but Alec knew his body better than he did. But he had to try so he asked Alec, "It won't help at all?" Alec tiredly shook his head no in reply. Dean looked back to Chris and said, "You might as well do what he says…"

"Ok…" Chris replied uncertainly. He picked up a scalpel off of the tray and warned Alec, "This is going to hurt…"

Alec just raised his arm up, already knowing what was coming and said, "Just do it."

Chris shot one more look to Dean, and then he carefully put one hand on Alec's chest and started counting down his ribs. Once he got in between the correct ribs, he made a small incision and put in a tube to drain the fluid. Alec winced a little when he did that, but he didn't let out any sound of pain and Dean only saw him wince because he was looking for it. Then, Chris got the oxygen set up next to Alec and made him put an oxygen mask on over his nose and mouth.

Alec looked miserable sitting there shirtless, with a tube in his chest and a mask over his face. He looked cold too so Dean asked Chris, "You got a blanket in this place?"

Chris had already started over to Sam, but then he turned back to Dean and then looked at Alec and nodded. "I'll be right back…" He left the room, and then came back with a stack of blankets. He draped one over Alec's shoulders, did the same for Sam, and handed Dean the last one. "Sorry about that, I wasn't thinking…" Dean nodded his thanks; he was just glad that his brothers could be a little more comfortable.

Chris went over to Sam next and carefully started undoing his splint. "You did a good job setting the bone," Chris said to Alec after a few minutes. Alec just nodded that he heard him, and then leaned his head back and closed his eyes.

Chris got to work on putting a cast on Sam's leg, but he was quiet as he worked. Dean really wished he could just sit in silence, but he couldn't. Sometimes he could, but right now he just wanted some noise to distract him.

"Who's Lauren?" Dean asked to break the silence.

"She's Zach's wife," Chris replied easily.

"She'll be happy to see him…" Dean said back and Chris nodded in agreement. "Do they have any kids?"

"Dean, let Chris work," Sam said before Chris could answer.

"It's ok," Chris said with a chuckle. "They don't have any kids, but they both help me out with mine. I have a boy and a girl; Luke and Abby. Luke's 9 and Abby just turned 4."

"What does your wife do?" Dean asked curiously. Chris's shoulders tensed and he cleared his throat, and Dean knew he'd asked the wrong question. "I'm sorry, uh, I ask too many questions…"

"No, it's ok," Chris quickly reassured. "My wife, Casey, died two years ago to cancer…"

"Chris, I'm sorry," Dean said quietly.

"It's ok, really," Chris said, "Luke's taken it really hard, but Abby doesn't really know what happened. Zach and Lauren have really helped out, but then Zach went missing and…it's just been a rough time for a while…" He cleared his throat again, and then changed the subject, "So, what happened out there?"

"You probably won't believe me," Dean said with a small smile, running his hand through his hair.

"I don't know…I've seen a lot of weird things," Chris replied.

Dean thought about it, and then looked at Sam to see what he thought. He shrugged back, signaling that it couldn't hurt to just tell him. "Well," Dean said coming to a decision, "Zach can back me up anyway…have you ever heard of a Wendigo?"

Chris stopped what he was doing to look over at Dean for a second, "No, I can't say that I have."

"Well, it's a supernatural creature that feeds off of humans," Dean started to explain. "It's super-fast and super strong and the only way to kill it is by torching it. You following me so far?"

Chris slowly nodded, "I guess so…Is it what kidnapped those other campers too?"

Dean nodded, "Yeah, but we didn't get there in time to save them…we were just lucky that Zach was still alive."

"Thank you, for saving him," Chris said, turning again so he could look at all three of them and thank them. "I forgot to say that earlier, but really, I can't even thank you enough."

Dean just shrugged back, "It's kinda what we do…"

Chris frowned and asked, "What do you mean?"

"We're hunters…" Dean kind of mumbled. "We go around and hunt supernatural creatures…"

"Really?" Chris asked in surprise.

"Yeah," Dean said with a small smile.

"Huh…" Chris breathed out, turning back to work on the cast.

Dean couldn't really tell if Chris believed him or not, but he hadn't kicked them out yet, so that was a good sign.

"So, how did all of this happen?" Chris asked curiously.

"Well, it caught up to us and threw Sam into a tree," Dean started to explain. "We should've turned back then, but we didn't… We made camp by a small lake, but it attacked us again. It knocked Alec out and tossed him into the lake, and then it kidnapped Sam."

"It's starting to make sense now," Chris muttered. He shot a quick glance to Dean, and at his look of confusion he said, "Sam didn't really say what had happened and I couldn't get Alec to really talk at all…but with fluid in his lungs and broken ribs, it kinda seemed like someone had to do CPR…"

Dean looked over at Alec, but it almost looked like he was sleeping. After a moment though, one of Alec's eyes cracked open; he must have felt Dean's gaze on him. Dean mouthed 'sorry', but Alec just shrugged back like he didn't care. But Dean could tell that something seemed to be bothering him. He would have to talk to him after they had some rest.

"Yeah, I did…" Dean finally answered. Alec closed his eyes again, but Dean knew he was still listening. _Good,_ Dean thought, _I want him to hear this._ "He was down a long time, but he's a tough kid…and I wasn't going to give up on him. He's my brother…he's had a tough life and it might've been easier on him to just let him go, but I couldn't. I can't do this without either of my brothers," Dean admitted.

Sam gave him a small smile and nodded his agreement. Dean looked over at Alec and saw that he had both eyes open and he was staring steadily back at him. Alec started to reach up to take off the oxygen mask, but before he could Sam said, "Alec, leave it."

Alec rolled his eyes, but he relaxed again in his seat and closed his eyes.

It took Chris over an hour to finish the cast on Sam's leg. Dean had started to doze off after a while, but Chris shook his shoulder once he was done.

"It's time to find you guys somewhere to sleep," Chris said quietly.

Dean sleepily nodded back, and then slowly stood up. Chris took the needle out of his arm so he could help Sam, and then he led the way to one of the back rooms. There were two hospital beds in the room and a cozy looking recliner. Dean got Sam into the first bed, and then went back with Chris to get Alec.

They put him in the second bed, but Chris changed out the oxygen mask for a nasal canal so he could sleep easier. Once Sam and Alec were both settled, Dean went over to the recliner and sank into it.

"You sure you want to sleep there?" Chris asked. "There's another room if you want to use it…"

"Nah," Dean said, snuggling down further into the recliner, "I'm not leavin' 'em…"

"Alright," Chris replied. "If you need me, I'll be in the next room over."

Dean nodded that he'd heard, and then drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Alec's eyes flew open as he startled awake. He sat bolt upright; but looked around frantically to try and figure out where he was. It was dark in his room and he couldn't shake the feeling that he was in the infirmary at Manticore.

He started to panic, even though he knew that was the wrong thing to do. His breathing started coming in shorter gasps because he felt trapped here. He tore out the needle in his arm and pulled off the nasal canal that was giving him extra oxygen so he could get out of there. But then he saw the chest tube coming out of his side. He was more careful taking this out and he pressed his hand against his side.

He turned and got his feet over the side of his bed. His breathing hadn't gotten any better, but he tried to ignore that for now. He started to get up, but a soft snore had him freezing and scanning the room again.

He tried to take a deep breath, but couldn't and ended up starting a coughing fit instead. It was like he was trying to cough up a lung and the noise woke up the other person in the room.

Alec tried to get up and get away from whoever was here, but he couldn't move very fast. He was just about gasping for air and his vision started to black out on the edges. The man started to move towards him and he backed up as far as he could to get away from him until his back his the wall.

"Alec?" The man asked softly. Alec still couldn't focus enough to figure out who it was and that was just making him panic more. That and the fact that his panicking was probably going to get him thrown into psy-ops. "Alec, calm down and breathe," the man said, sounding more firm and more awake this time.

Alec still couldn't do it; he couldn't catch his breath and he was just about to pass out.

"Shit," the man muttered. Alec could kind of hear him moving around, but there was a roaring that was starting to block everything out. It was just a second later, and then something was being put over his nose and mouth. His instinct was to fight it, but he was weak without oxygen and the man easily kept it over his face. It took him a moment, but when he stopped fighting, he figured out it was an oxygen mask and it was starting to help him breathe easier.

"That's it Alec, just breathe," the man soothed, starting to rub circles on his back. That wasn't Manticore… and then it clicked, that was something Dean or Sam would do.

"Dean?" Alec asked, his voice muffled through the mask.

"Yeah kiddo, it's me," Dean reassured.

Alec relaxed against his big brother, knowing that he would take care of him. "I didn't know…" Alec said after a few minutes.

"I know, it's ok," Dean said softly. "It's been a rough few days…"

Alec nodded against Dean's chest. Dean let him sit for a few minutes more before he started to move. Alec watched him with bleary eyes as he got some gauze and taped it over where the chest tube had been.

"You ready to get back in bed?" Dean asked.

Alec nodded again, and Dean helped him stand up. He saw that Sam was awake and watching them when Dean got him to his feet. He felt bad for waking them both up, but he couldn't help it.

Dean sat him on the edge of the bed and made him keep the mask covering his face. Alec expected Dean to make him lay down, but he didn't. Instead, he went over to Sam's bed and moved him to the recliner. Sam looked like he didn't know what was going on either and he shrugged over at Alec to tell him to just let Dean do whatever he was doing.

Dean pushed Sam's empty bed over until it was right up against his own. He moved Sam back to his bed, who was still looking at him curiously, and then went back to Alec's side.

"Scoot," Dean said, once he was facing Alec again.

Alec just looked up at him like he was insane.

"Dean, what are you doing?" Sam asked after a moment.

"I wanna lie down and it's cold in here," Dean simply stated. Then he motioned for Alec to scoot over again, and then lay down next to him so they were all three in pretty much the same bed.

"Dean-" Sam started.

"Shut up and go to sleep Sam," Dean mumbled, pulling the cover up further.

Sam grumbled a little, but he eventually relaxed and was asleep a few minutes later. Alec wasn't sure if Dean was asleep yet or not, but he knew Dean had done this for him. If he woke up again, he probably wouldn't panic since Sam and Dean were on either side of him.

When they were in different motel rooms, Alec didn't always know where he was when he woke up from a nightmare or something similar. He would silently panic, thinking that he was back at Manticore, but he would eventually figure out that he was with Sam and Dean. He would move from his bed over to Sam or Dean's bed so if he woke up again, he would figure it out faster. Neither of them had ever asked him about it, but Dean must have figured it out. Which was probably why he did this whole thing.

Dean was lying on his back and he had his eyes closed, so it was possible that he was asleep. But his breathing wasn't as slow as it usually was when he slept so Alec figured it couldn't hurt to try. He reached up and tapped Morse Code on Dean's arm. 'Thanks.'

Dean didn't say anything in reply, and Alec really thought he was asleep now. But then a moment later, Dean's lips tugged up into a small smile. Alec relaxed after that and slept soundly between his brothers for the rest of the night.

* * *

 _More soon..._


	6. Chapter 6

_Sorry for the long delay on this story! I don't know if I mentioned this earlier, but I'm working on a Dark Angel story right now and I just started a Supernatural/Hunger Games crossover if any of you are interested! Ok on to this chapter!_

* * *

Sam woke up practically sweating. Alec wasn't kidding when he said he ran hotter than they did; it was like a little furnace was sleeping next to him. This wasn't the first time Alec had slept in his bed, but he hadn't noticed how warm Alec was before. Maybe he had a small fever since his body had been through so much and was trying to recover.

Sam barely had to move to brush his arm against Alec's; he didn't want to wake him up, but he wanted to try and check that his fever wasn't too high. Alec didn't even notice the light touch on his arm; he was probably used to being brushed against since they were all practically on top of each other. Three guys were sharing two beds, and they definitely weren't small guys. Alec was the smallest and even he was over 6 foot and about 180 pounds.

Sam didn't mind sharing the bed, in fact he was used to it since he'd shared with Dean when they were kids and Alec slept wherever he wanted. He was also use to Alec waking up and not knowing where he was. It was a regular occurrence now and Sam and Dean both worked at getting him back to the present. Sam didn't know what caused it, but it seemed to be happening more frequently.

Dean had been able to get him to open up a little bit more, but he still wouldn't really talk about Manticore. He'd make a joke sometimes about his DNA or his upbringing, but he wouldn't do more than that. If they asked him something about it, he would answer, but Sam had no idea what to ask. He didn't know what Alec had been through and he didn't want to push him too far. He would definitely need Dean's help to figure out how to help Alec.

Sam wasn't sure what time it was, but he knew he'd been asleep for a long time. His muscles were stiff and he wanted to stretch, but he didn't want to wake up his brothers. Alec's face was pressed against Dean's shoulder and one of his legs was over Sam's; he couldn't imagine it was comfortable, but he looked like he was in a deep sleep, so maybe it was. Maybe he felt safe in between his two brothers and it helped him sleep. That thought made Sam smile a little, even though he didn't know if it was true or not.

The door suddenly opened a crack and Chris peeked inside. He frowned when he didn't see Dean in the recliner, and then his mouth popped open in shock at seeing the three of them sleeping together.

"Are you guys ok?" Chris whispered in concern, slowly walking into the room.

"Yeah, we're ok," Sam quickly reassured, but he kept his voice down too.

"Are they awake?" Zach suddenly asked quietly, appearing in the doorway. He stopped at the sight of the three brothers in the bed, and then a slow smile started to appear on his face. "Y'know, we have more beds," Zach told Sam.

"We know," Sam replied. "But…it's just better for us to stick together…"

Zach nodded in understanding, but then he frowned when he looked at Alec. He looked to Chris and asked, "Isn't he supposed to be on oxygen?"

Chris frowned and switched his focus to Alec, and then looked at Sam asking him a silent question.

Sam shot a quick look over at Alec and saw that he didn't have the oxygen mask or the nasal canal on. "He must have gotten uncomfortable and taken it off," Sam said with a shrug.

"It tickled…" Alec mumbled against Dean's shoulder.

Chris and Zach both jumped a little in surprise, but Sam had figured he had woken up when Chris opened the door.

"Don't need it as much now anyway…" Alec slurred in sleep.

"He took out the chest tube too," Zach whispered to Chris.

"He's ok," Sam reassured quickly. Sam looked between the two brothers and then asked, "Do you need us to go? Cause we can. You guys have helped us more than we could have even imagined."

"No, no," Chris replied, holding his hands up to stop Sam, and then he shot a look to Zach.

"We were going to move you guys to my house," Zach said with a smile. "We have food for you guys and you can heal up for as long as you want."

"Really?" Sam asked in disbelief.

Chris nodded, "I was going to check up on Alec first, and then yeah, we were going to move you somewhere more comfortable. If that's alright with you guys?"

Sam knew his brothers were probably starving and food and a warm house sounded pretty amazing right now. "Yeah…ok," Sam slowly agreed. Then he turned and lightly hit Dean on the arm. "Dean, wake up."

"Wha'?" Dean grumbled without opening his eyes.

"Wake up," Sam said in exasperation.

Dean cracked one eye open and glared at Sam and warned, "This better be good…"

"It involves food," Sam bribed.

Dean weighed the options of sleeping more or getting food for a minute, and then decided. "Ok, food wins…" He threw the covers off of him, and then slowly sat up. He brought Alec up with him, but Alec didn't make any move to actually wake up. "C'mon Alec, time to get up."

"Food didn't win for me," Alec muttered. "I wanna sleep more…don't wanna move…"

"Nope," Dean instantly replied. "You need to eat. All you've had is that crappy granola and moving is required to get food, so c'mon." Dean slid off of the bed and Alec groaned. He started to fall forward since Dean wasn't supporting him anymore, but Dean caught him.

Alec still grumbled some, but he slid off of the bed and stood next to Dean a few moments later. It wasn't even weird anymore for Sam to see them standing next to each other. To other people they still looked identical, and they still had the same features, but Sam could easily tell the difference. It wasn't even the age difference that really separated them, but Sam didn't really know how to explain it. It might just be because he knew them better than anyone else.

Dean made sure Alec was steady, and then went to Sam's side of the bed and helped him up.

Chris moved toward Alec and checked where the chest tube had been, and then listened to him breathe. Sam was watching Chris closely to make sure that he thought Alec was ok which is why he saw him frown after listening for a few seconds.

"What's wrong?" Sam instantly asked, making Dean freeze and look over at Alec. He scanned Alec to look for what was wrong, but Alec just shrugged back.

"It's just weird…" Chris slowly replied. He moved to stand behind Alec and pressed the stethoscope against his back. Alec's eyes suddenly widened like he knew what was going on, but Sam was still lost.

"What's weird?" Dean asked; apparently he was as lost as Sam was.

Chris listened for a few more seconds, and then stood up. "That oxygen and sleep did wonders for you…you're nowhere near back to normal, but you sound better than I expected."

"Huh, that's lucky," Dean replied casually.

"It's more than lucky," Chris replied. "It's almost unbelievable…You do have a small fever though which is to be expected, but other than that I'm not as worried as I was last night…"

"Well, since he seems to be ok, we should get going so you can open the clinic," Zach quickly cut in. "Besides, you guys are probably starving."

"You got that right," Dean said. He shot a quick glance over at Alec who nodded his agreement. Zach left the room for a second, and then came back with a pair of crutches for Sam.

"Thanks," Sam said gratefully and Zach nodded back.

"I'll see you guys tonight," Chris said as they all were leaving.

Sam turned back for a second and said, "Thanks Chris." Chris smiled a little and waved bye, and then Sam followed his brothers out of the room.

* * *

Alec ended up trailing behind his brothers as they walked out of the clinic and to the Impala. He was still really tired and his muscles ached thanks to the fever. Overall, he just didn't feel good. His breathing was better than it had been the night before, but he knew he needed to take it easy.

He slumped into the backseat, and then leaned against the door and closed his eyes. He could practically feel Dean looking at him in concern, but he was too tired to reassure him that he was ok. He didn't know how far it was to Zach's house, but he couldn't help that he fell asleep as soon as Dean started the engine.

 _Alec was holding his breath; he was at the bottom of a tank of water. To his left was a girl from his unit and to his right, a boy. He knew he was in Manticore because this was one of the training exercises. They'd done this a few times before and Alec knew the drill; they weren't allowed to come up until the signal._

 _Alec could already feel his lungs begging for air and he wondered how long they had been down there. They could easily hold their breath for four minutes, but this felt like it was pushing it. Alec looked above him to see where the lab coats were. They were the ones watching them and taking notes, but he didn't see any up there today._

 _Alec stayed where he was and waited. He could feel his heart pounding, needing oxygen, but he couldn't go up until the signal._

 _A movement to his right suddenly caught his attention; the boy who had been next to him was swimming up to the surface. He made it to the top, but then a muffled shot rang out and blood started tainting the water._

 _Alec looked to the girl to his left; she looked just as shocked as he was._

 _It was close to maybe six minutes now and Alec started to lose focus. The girl next to him started floating up to the surface. Her eyes were closed and Alec knew he wasn't far behind. He didn't know why, but they seemed to want them to stay down there until they died._

 _His vision started to go black and suddenly he couldn't control his lungs. He tried to take a breath, but water poured in. He didn't really care though…it felt peaceful and he just let his eyes drift shut, and then everything was black._

"Alec!"

Something suddenly hit him hard on the chest and he gasped awake. He didn't know where he was or what was going on, but his chest hurt. Someone put two fingers against his neck and Alec weakly tried to brush them off. They just caught his wrist and held his hand to the side.

"Alec, open your eyes!"

Alec forced his eyes open and he looked around to see that he was still in the backseat of the Impala. The car was still on, but it was idling on the side of the road. Dean was in the backseat with him and Sam was turned around in the front seat so he could see.

"You alright?" Dean asked once Alec focused on him. Alec nodded, but didn't meet Dean's gaze. "You can't keep doing this Alec," Dean stated. He turned his face and forced him to look at him. "You're gonna talk to us and tell us right now what's going on."

Alec glanced over at Sam to see if he would get him out of this, but he looked just as determined as Dean.

"C'mon Alec, you gotta talk to us," Dean begged when Alec didn't answer him. "It used to only be sometimes you didn't know where you were when you woke up, now it's almost every time. This time you stopped breathing! We've tried to give you space, but it's gotten to the point where we need to know what's going on."

Alec took as deep of a breath that he could, and then finally nodded. Dean let go of his face and scooted back a little so Alec wasn't crowded.

"I keep…" Alec had to clear his throat before he kept going, "I keep dreaming about old times at Manticore…this last one was one of the worst." Alec looked over at Sam and Dean, but they weren't looking at him in disgust. He had to remind himself that he wasn't at Manticore and that Sam and Dean didn't judge him for his weakness.

"In one of the training exercises they put us in the bottom of a tank filled with water and you had to hold your breath until they signaled that you could come up. If you went up before the signal, they shot you. Most of the time they just kept you down there for four minutes and then you went up. But this time was different. There was no signal and we were down there for six minutes."

"Six minutes?!" Sam suddenly cut in. "That's insane! Those people were trying to kill you!"

"Sam, be quiet and let Alec talk," Dean said. Sam glared back at him, but didn't say anything else.

"Well, I think the plan was partly to try and kill us," Alec started again. "Because I passed out, and then the next thing I know I'm suddenly coughing up water. The girl that was next to me didn't come back. I think maybe they were weeding out the ones who couldn't take it…"

"You think back at the lake might have triggered the memory or something?" Dean asked softly. "Like maybe it brought it back and now you're reliving it…"

"Yeah, that makes sense," Alec agreed. "Sorry about earlier…" Alec meant about scarring them earlier when he stopped breathing, but he didn't say that, he hoped they already knew.

"It's ok," Dean replied. He ruffled Alec's hair lightly and then said, "Maybe now that dream, memory thing, won't be as bad…"

Alec nodded, but he really didn't know if that would be the case. "Maybe…"

"Either way, we're almost to the house and tonight you can sleep with one of us again," Dean said, and then he started climbing over the back of the seat to get back in front. "That way if you wake up and don't know where you are, one of us will be there."

"Or if you stop breathing again," Sam threw in. "That really scared both of us…"

Alec just nodded again and looked out of the window. He really didn't want to think about being at Manticore anymore, and he hoped that dream wouldn't come back again.

* * *

Dean parked outside of a two story house set deep in the woods. The driveway seemed to take forever to drive through, but now they were finally there. Dean glanced back at Alec and was relieved to see that he was still awake.

Alec had really scared him when Dean had looked back at him while driving. He was pale and slumped against the door, and when Dean waited to see if his chest would rise, it didn't. He'd pulled the car over as fast as he could and climbed over the back to get to Alec.

It had taken him a while to get Alec to wake up, but then he couldn't take it anymore. He couldn't let Alec go through this alone; he needed to know what was going on. He'd been surprised that Alec had actually told them what his dream had been. Now they just needed to find a way to help him.

"You coming?" Sam asked as he was getting out of the car.

Dean shook himself, "Yeah…" He got out of the car and started for the front door where Zach had just come out to see them.

"What took you guys so long? You were right behind me, and then you were gone," Zach said, walking towards them.

"We just had to make a quick stop, that's all," Dean waved off.

Zach shrugged, and then motioned for them to follow him, "Come on in. I'll give you a tour of the house and you guys can meet Lauren and the kids."

Dean let Sam and Alec go into the house first, and then walked in and closed the door behind him. They walked into a big living room that had new looking furniture and a huge TV on the wall and a fireplace on another. It had a few decorations, but they seemed to make the room more homey and comfortable.

"This is the living room," Zach said even though it wasn't really necessary. He led them around a staircase and pointed out two doors. "These are the guest rooms. I would say that one of you could sleep on the sofa in the living room, but you don't seem to mind sharing," he said with a smile. Then he pointed to a door across from the rooms, "That's a bathroom you guys can use. Our rooms are upstairs so you don't have to worry about waking us up."

Zach led them back through the living room, and then to the kitchen. There was a woman in the kitchen and two kids sitting at a table. The woman was very pretty with long blonde hair and bright blue eyes and she smiled when they walked in.

"This is Lauren," Zach introduced. Then he pointed to the two kids. "That's Abby." Abby was coloring in a book and didn't bother to look up when they walked in she was so focused on her coloring. She had brown hair that was in pigtails and was wearing overalls with flowers on them. "And that's Luke." Luke was coloring too, but he waved when he was introduced. He had short brown hair and his clothes looked like he'd been playing outside since they were kind of dirty.

"This is Sam, Dean, and Alec," Zach said to Lauren and the kids.

"It's nice to meet you guys, I've heard a lot about you," Lauren said with a smile. "Are you guys hungry?"

"Yes ma'am," Dean replied, walking further into the room with Sam and Alec.

She turned and grabbed some plates that were already full of food and set them on the table. "We made this earlier since Zach said you guys were going to be staying here."

"Thank you," Sam said, he hopped over to the table where Abby and Luke were and sat down next to Abby.

"It's the least we can do," Lauren replied. "You guys saved Zach."

Dean started to wave her off as he and Alec both sat down, but Zach said, "Lauren, they're too modest to take any credit. I've already tried to thank them multiple times and it was almost impossible to even get them to accept our help."

"Well, you guys are welcome to stay as long as you want," Lauren said. She walked over to Zach and they both walked over to the living room. "If you need us or want more food, we'll be in here."

Dean nodded that he'd heard, and then looked to his plate. They each had a stack of pancakes and a pile of bacon and Dean didn't waste any time digging in.

Abby suddenly stood up on her chair and looked over at Sam, "My name's Abby, what's yours?"

"Sam," he replied with a smile. "How old are you?"

"4" she held up for fingers, and then reached out and touched Sam's hair, "Your hair is soft!"

Sam chuckled and Dean looked over at Alec to see him hiding a smile.

"You should do your hair like mine," Abby said after a moment.

"Abby, don't mess with them while they're eating," Luke suddenly said. Abby stuck her tongue out at her brother, but then sat down again in her chair. They ate in silence after that, with Abby and Luke coloring, and then made their way to the living room.

Zach and Lauren were both sitting on a little loveseat and Sam, Dean, and Alec all shared the sofa. Luke and Abby came into the living room and played on the floor while they watched TV. Sam had his leg propped up on an ottoman and Dean sat between his brothers. They watched TV for a while and eventually Alec leaned against him in sleep.

Dean really didn't know how to thank Zach and Lauren for everything they were doing for them. He had just wanted a break so Sam and Alec could heal up, but this was nicer than he ever imagined.

* * *

 _More soon. Could be the last chapter, but I'm not sure yet._


	7. Chapter 7

_Hey everyone! Sorry for the long delay on this ending, but thank you very much for the follows/favorites and especially the reviews! I hope you all liked the story. I have another one planned if you guys want it! Thanks for reading!_

* * *

"Rise and shine!" Dean suddenly said, barging in to Sam and Alec's room. "It's time for breakfast!"

Dean flipped on the light; Sam turned his head away and Alec ducked his head under his pillow. Neither of them made any move to get up so Dean ran in and jumped onto the middle of the bed.

Alec grunted and Sam said, "Hey! Broken leg here!"

"You two need to get up, Zach and Lauren made us more food," Dean said in reply. He pulled the pillow off of Alec's head and he turned and scowled at him. "C'mon, get up."

Alec sighed, and then reluctantly rolled out of bed. He shot a glare over his shoulder at Dean before he walked out of the room. They had been there for five days now, and Alec was almost completely back to normal, but he'd been sleeping with either Sam or Dean each night. He still had nightmares every night, but he had refused to talk about them since the one in the car.

Dean figured they would stay only a couple more days, and then hit the road. He didn't want to bother Zach and Lauren any more than they already had, but this had been a really nice break for them.

Dean waited until Alec's footsteps disappeared entirely, and then he turned to look at Sam. "Any nightmares?"

Sam nodded, "Two…but he wouldn't talk about them…"

Dean ran his hand down his face and shook his head, "I don't know how to help him…"

Sam put a comforting hand against Dean's shoulder, "He'll come around, we just have to keep letting him know that we're here if he wants to talk." Dean nodded, but didn't say anything. "…Maybe if you tried talking to him again, he'd open up more."

Dean huffed, "Sam, he won't talk to me anymore than he'll talk to you."

Sam shook his head in disbelief, "Dean, he talks to you more than anyone else. You two share something that I have no way of understanding."

"You should talk to him," Dean said, "You're better at that sharing and caring crap…I wouldn't even know what to say to him. Besides, you get nightmares too, maybe you two could relate better…"

"Dean, just try, ok?" Sam earnestly asked, shooting him the puppy dog eyes.

Dean took a deep breath, and then finally nodded that he would try. Sam shot him a victorious smile, and then grabbed his crutches and hopped off towards the kitchen. Dean waited just a moment before he followed his two brothers.

Zach and Lauren were both in the kitchen, but Dean figured Abby and Luke must have been in the living room. Zach handed him a plate when he walked into the kitchen and Dean quickly loaded it up with biscuits and gravy, and then sat between his two brothers. Zach and Lauren both sat down too, once they all had food.

"How would you guys feel if you maybe babysat for us today?" Zach asked after a moment.

Sam and Alec both looked at him to see what his answer was going to be, but he was shocked that they trusted them enough to watch Luke and Abby. All three of them loved the kids and the kids seemed to like them too, but they were still strangers.

"Are you sure you're ok with just us being here?" Dean asked slowly.

"You guys give me a good vibe," Zach said seriously. "I can't explain it, but I just know you are what people would call 'good guys'."

"If you don't feel comfortable, you can say no," Lauren quickly threw in.

"And it wouldn't be for too long," Zach said. "I just have to go to the clinic today and Lauren needs to go to the store. Chris should be by at some point and we'll just be a phone call away if you need us."

"Um, sure," Dean said, still uncertain but feeling like this was one way they could actually help out.

"Great!" Zach said with a smile.

"That would be a huge help," Lauren said, also smiling at them.

Dean shrugged, and then Sam said, "It's the least we can do since you guys have helped us out so much."

Zach just waved him off and they all went back to eating. Dean and Alec both jumped up once everyone was done and started cleaning up. Zach and Lauren both tried to help, but Dean wouldn't let them; they had made the food so Dean and Alec would clean up.

"You guys sure you'll be ok?" Zach asked as he and Lauren were both getting ready to leave.

"We'll be fine," Dean reassured, even though in reality he was nervous as Hell. He didn't want anything to happen to these kids and now he was in charge of them.

"Ok, call us if you need something," Zach replied, and then they both left the house.

"Do normal people usually leave their kids with complete strangers?" Alec asked quietly once it was just the three of them in the kitchen.

"No, I don't think so…" Dean said slowly. "But I've never really been normal so I don't know…Sam, what d'ya think?"

Sam shrugged, "I didn't know that many people with kids…"

"Maybe it is normal," Alec said with a shrug.

Dean didn't have much to compare it to, especially since his Dad had dropped him and Sam off a lot when they were kids. Maybe it was normal and none of them knew.

"Well, I guess we should find them…" Sam said after a minute. Alec and Dean both agreed and they all went to the living room.

Abby was lying on the floor playing with what looked like a doll, but Dean really had no idea. Luke was sitting on the sofa playing a handheld video game. Abby looked up when they walked in, but she went straight for Sam.

"Sam, it's time to play," Abby demanded. She started back to her doll, but she looked behind her to make sure Sam was following her. Alec was trying really hard to cover up his laughing and Dean was right there with him. Sam glared at them both and sat in one of the recliners near Abby.

Abby ran forward with her doll and showed it to Sam. She made him hold it while she ran to a pile of doll clothes on the floor.

"This is a nice doll," Sam said. He looked over at Dean and Alec for help, but they were still trying to hold in their laughter.

Abby stopped and looked at Sam like he didn't know anything. "It's a Barbie. Her name is Sophie."

"Oh," Sam muttered. Alec lost it and was bent over double he was laughing so hard. Dean patted his back, his own eyes tearing up at the lost look on Sam's face.

Abby shoved a new outfit into Sam's hands and said, "We have to change her clothes so she can go to work."

"Where does she work?" Dean asked from across the room.

"She's a doctor," Abby said with a smile. "She's going to put a cast on Sam's leg!"

Sam looked over at them, his eyes begging for help. But Dean and Alec both ignored him; too caught up in how hilarious this situation was.

Dean hadn't noticed Luke getting up until he was standing right in front of him and Alec.

"Do you guys want to play a game?" Luke asked once he had their attention.

"Sure," Dean said in surprise, "What do you want to play?"

"Risk!" Luke instantly replied, his eyes lighting up.

Dean glanced over at Alec to make sure he was ok with this, but Alec had a mischievous smirk on his face and Dean was a little worried on how this was going to end.

"Sounds good to me…" Dean said slowly, unsure of what he was getting himself into.

* * *

Alec didn't just win at Risk, he destroyed them. Dean hadn't stood a chance against Alec or even Luke. But in his defense he hadn't played that game in years and he'd told them he was a little rusty. Alec and Luke were sprawled across the floor now and Alec was teaching Luke everything he knew about the game.

Dean watched them for a while, impressed with Alec's seemingly endless knowledge on tactics, but also impressed with how well he was teaching Luke. He was patient and he explained things in a way that Luke could easily pick up.

Dean shot a look over at Sam. Abby had moved on from playing Barbie's with Sam to actually doing Sam's hair. He now had two pigtails sticking up with pink bows tied around them to keep them in place. Sam shot him a look clearly asking for his big brother to save him before it got any worse.

"That's what you get for having long hair," Dean said with a light chuckle. Sam instantly shot him a bitch face.

He really enjoyed his little brother's predicament, but he did eventually take pity on him.

"Hey Abby," Dean called out with a smile. She was standing on the chair behind Sam's back and putting the finishing touches on Sam's new hairstyle, but she looked up when Dean said her name. "You like coloring, don't you?"

Abby nodded slowly and narrowed her eyes suspiciously at Dean. He smiled and went to find some markers. He came back, and then sat on the floor in front of Sam's leg with the cast on it.

"I've got something you can color," Dean said. He held out the markers and Abby slowly slid out from behind Sam and onto the floor next to Dean. "This cast looks a little plain to me. Think you can fix it?"

Abby smiled and nodded her head enthusiastically. Dean gave her some of the markers and helped her draw pictures and color in Sam's cast. Dean caught Alec looking at him in amusement, and then he went back to his game. Sam shot him a grateful look and carefully pulled his hair out of the pigtails.

* * *

Sam's entire cast was colored by the time everyone was home for dinner. Lauren had come back a few hours after she left, and then Zach and Chris had just gotten back a few minutes ago. Dean had gone to help Lauren with dinner, but by the smell floating through the house, Alec figured it was almost ready.

Alec had actually really enjoyed staying with them, but he was surprised they had stayed as long as they did. He was mostly back to normal and even though they couldn't do much with Sam's leg, he still thought they would have moved on by now. He wasn't complaining though; they were being fed and they had really comfortable beds here and it was actually a lot of fun hanging out with the kids.

They ate dinner, and then Alec helped Zach with the dishes once they were all done. He was drying after Zach was done washing, and he didn't mind the chores at all. It was kind of nice pretending to be normal for a while.

Alec glanced up when Chris walked over to him. "Can I speak with you privately?" Chris whispered.

Alec felt a flutter of panic at his tone of voice and he looked around for Sam or Dean, but they had already gone back to the living room. He slowly set down the plate he'd been drying, and then nodded. Zach shot him a look that he couldn't really figure out, but he just left the room and followed Chris.

They went to a small study and Chris closed the door after Alec was inside. Alec looked around and shifted his weight nervously. He didn't know what Chris wanted to talk about, but he had a bad feeling that their stay was about to come to an end.

"Why don't you have a seat?" Chris offered after a moment. He went around the desk that was in the room and sat down. Alec looked around for a second, and then sat in the chair across from the desk. It was quiet for a minute, and then Chris started slowly, "It took me a while to figure it out…"

Alec fidgeted in his seat and looked for a way out of this, but he didn't see one. He figured that Chris had figured out that he was a transgenic and Alec had no idea how he would react to that fact. Zach had no problem with it, but everyone was different.

"…I think it took me so long because I don't really know you that well, but I've seen it with other patients. Zach mentioned that you might have PTSD which might tie into this as well…I think you might have survivor's guilt."

"What?" Alec asked in confusion.

Chris suddenly looked apologetic, "I'm sorry, I don't mean to overstep here, but I wanted to help if I could. I watch a lot of news so I know some of how you were raised and that could be a reason for it. If you want-"

"Wait," Alec suddenly stood up and he looked at Chris suspiciously, "What do you mean how I was raised?"

"You're a transgenic, right?" Chris asked in confusion.

Alec just stared back at him, "Zach told you, didn't he?"

Chris frowned, "No, I didn't think he knew."

"How'd you figure it out?" Alec asked. He was a second away from bolting, but he needed to find out how Chris knew so he could change whatever it was and this wouldn't happen again.

"There were just little clues; you said that the painkiller wouldn't work, you healed faster than you should have, and the very fact that you were still functioning at all when you came in were all clues. I saw your barcode too, and then I started to do some research. I'd heard of transgenics on the news, but they didn't really have much information. They were more concerned with how to get rid of you, but I was curious…I'm sorry."

Alec stood there for another second, and then slowly sat back down in the chair. He still wasn't sure if Chris was ok with him being a transgenic, but Chris might know how to help him. He was tired of his stupid nightmares; they woke him up every night and they'd just gotten worse since he'd almost drowned. Maybe Chris knew how to get rid of them. He still didn't say anything, but he looked at Chris until he finally continued.

Chris took a deep breath, "I help some Veterans and some of them suffer from nightmares and other things, but they're all different. Some of them have constant nightmares and others, the nightmares only come after something else triggers it."

"I have nightmares a lot," Alec admitted shortly.

"Have they gotten worse since…" Chris trailed off when Alec's eyes flashed up to his.

"Just tell me how to get rid of them," Alec said, his voice low.

"Well, it's different for everyone," Chris said slowly. "Some people it just helps to talk about it, but sometimes it just takes time."

There was a sudden knock on the door and Zach poked his head inside. He looked at both of them and Alec quickly stood up, seeing a chance to get out of there. Chris didn't have an easy fix, so there was no point in continuing this conversation. He hardly spilled his guts to his brothers; there was no way he was going to do it for a guy he'd just met.

"Good talk," Alec muttered as he walked out the door. Zach slipped inside behind him and closed the door again. Alec stayed on the other side and listened for a second.

"How'd it go?" Zach asked quietly.

"Not so good…" Chris muttered back.

"I told you to wait…maybe talk to his brothers too," Zach replied.

"I just wanted to help…" Chris said. "I get the feeling they aren't going to be here for very much longer… They seem like good people and I just wanted to help."

"I know," Zach said. "Maybe you did help?"

"Maybe…"

Alec heard the chair squeak and he quickly took off before either of them opened the door.

* * *

"Where's Alec?" Sam asked after a while. It was starting to get dark and Dean was trying to decide how to break the news that they would be leaving in the morning. They'd left Alec to help clean up in the kitchen, but that had been over an hour ago now.

Dean looked around the room, but he didn't see Alec in there.

"I'll go see if he turned in early," Dean said, getting to his feet and walking back to the two guest rooms. He would have to check both since Alec could be sleeping in either one.

Dean peeked inside both of them, but Alec wasn't there. He went back to the living room and shook his head to Sam. Sam frowned and started to get up, but Dean waved him off. He went back through the kitchen and down to the study where he found Chris and Zach.

"Hey, have you guys seen Alec?" Dean asked quietly.

Chris looked guilty and Zach nodded his head for Dean to come in. Dean scowled, but went inside and looked between the two brothers.

"I tried to help, but I might've made things worse…" Chris said after a moment.

"How?" Dean instantly asked.

"We think Alec has PTSD and maybe survivor's guilt which could be causing the nightmares," Zach explained. "We wanted to see if he wanted to talk about it, but now we think we should have just stayed out of it."

"Or brought you or Sam in too," Chris said.

"Do you know where he went?" Dean asked. He wanted to be mad at them for stepping in their business, but he knew they were trying to help. He wanted to help Alec too, but it was obvious that Chris and Zach went about it the wrong way.

"He left a few minutes ago…" Zach said slowly. "I would have thought he'd go back into the living room…"

"Ok," Dean said quickly. He didn't want them to start looking for Alec too; if they found him before Dean did, he'd probably bolt again. "I'll find him," Dean said easily, throwing on a reassuring smile.

Dean walked down the hall and tried to think of where Alec could have gone. There weren't very many places he could go in the house, but Dean didn't think he'd leave without them. He had to be there somewhere; Dean just needed to figure it out.

Dean went back to the living room and Sam looked up at him expectantly. He shook his head again, but then asked, "He have his phone on him?"

Sam looked around the room, and then his face fell. "I don't think so…" Sam pointed and Dean looked over to the table and saw Alec's phone lying there.

Dean threw his head back and muttered, "Why does he even have a phone…"

"Where do you think he is?" Sam asked quietly.

Dean thought for a few seconds and looked around the room. Alec would want to go somewhere he could be alone, but he'd still want to keep an eye on things. Dean's gaze fell on the stairs and he looked up. Alec liked heights…

Dean let out a sigh, "This kid's gonna be the death of me…" Sam looked at him in confusion so he said, "I think I know where he is…"

He started for the door before Sam could ask him and he went outside. Dean walked a little ways out from the house, and then scanned the roof for any sign of his little brother. He just barely saw the edge of Alec's t-shirt by the chimney and Dean went around until he saw him.

"You gonna come down or you gonna make me come up there?" Dean asked.

Alec jumped a little when Dean spoke, and then looked down. "You don't like heights…" Alec mumbled.

"That mean you're coming down here?" Dean asked hopefully.

Alec sighed, and then stood up. Before Dean could protest, he jumped off of the roof and landed next to him without any problem at all.

"I hate it when you do that," Dean stated. Alec just looked back at him so he fussed, "And what are you doin' coming out here with just a t-shirt. It's cold out here and you could get sick…"

"I'm alright," Alec immediately replied.

Dean shook his head, and then grabbed Alec's wrist and led him over to the Impala. He opened the passenger door and made Alec sit down. Dean ran into the house and grabbed his keys and Alec's jacket. "Found him," Dean told Sam. "We're gonna go for a ride." Sam nodded in understanding and Dean ran back outside.

"Where are we going?" Alec asked when Dean started the car. He didn't really sound like he cared, but he asked because it was expected of him.

"We're just going to drive," Dean said as he reversed, and then put the car in gear. "You can talk if you want or we can just ride in silence, I don't care either way." Alec just looked over at him for a minute, and then switched his look to the window.

That was fine; Dean would drive until Alec felt like talking to him. If that didn't work, then he wasn't sure what he was going to do. He wished he knew how Sam always made him start talking when he didn't want to. This was why Sam would have been better at this.

Dean drove for a long time; it was probably close to two hours, but he wasn't quite sure when they left. Alec had sat in silence the entire time and Dean decided it was time to change it up. He stopped the car at a little turn off on the side of the road.

"C'mon, let's stretch for a minute," Dean said. Alec shrugged, and then moved to get out of the car. Dean sat on the hood and a moment later, Alec sat next to him. "Ok, time to start talking," Dean finally said.

"I thought you said we could just ride in silence," Alec pointed out.

"We're not riding anymore, so now it's time to talk," Dean replied.

Alec was still quiet for a few minutes, and Dean wasn't sure how he was going to make Alec talk. He probably shouldn't do it that way, but the silence was starting to wear on him and he really wanted to be able to help Alec.

"I don't know why they let me live," Alec finally said. His voice was so quiet, Dean could barely hear him, but his entire focus right now was Alec and he was relieved he'd decided it was time to talk.

"You mean Manticore?" Dean asked softly.

Alec nodded, "Ever since you brought me back…I keep having nightmares where I was the one that made it…"

"Like the tank dream you told us about?" Dean asked. "With the girl who didn't make it?"

"Yeah…they're all like that and they all happened. I just never realized before…Last night's, we were lined up for call and they took the guy next to me. They didn't have any reason; it was just luck of the draw. I kept my eyes forward like I was supposed to, but I didn't know if I was going to be next or if they were just going to take one of us away…"

Alec dropped his head down and Dean put his arm around his shoulders.

"And then when they had a reason to actually kill me, they didn't…I disobeyed orders and they should've killed me for it, but they gave me another chance and I don't know why…"

"That place was twisted Alec. I don't know why they did what they did, but I'm glad you're not there anymore," Dean tried to reassure. He knew it wasn't great, but he didn't know how to make this better for him.

"Y'know what's worse? I miss it sometimes," Alec admitted.

"Manticore?" Dean asked in surprise.

Alec nodded, "I knew what was expected of me and I just did it…It had a routine and I never questioned it…" Alec shook his head, and then looked out into the darkness. "When Max burnt the place down, I was pissed at her. I didn't know what I was supposed to do…I felt like she'd just destroyed my home…As messed up as it is, Manticore was my home."

"It was all you knew," Dean said softly. "I don't blame you for feeling that way. I still wish we'd found out about you sooner, so we could've gotten you out of there."

Alec shrugged, but then looked over at Dean with shining eyes, "Do you know how to make the nightmares go away?"

Dean gave Alec a sad smile, "No kiddo, I don't."

"I just want them to stop. I don't want to relive it every night," Alec said brokenly. A tear slipped past his defenses and streaked down his cheek. "It's like I'm back there every night and it's terrifying. What if I wake up and hurt you or Sam because I don't know where I am?"

"We'll work on it ok?" Dean tried to reassure. "Me and Sam are lookin' out for you and you're not gonna hurt us. I'm trying to come up with more ways to snap you out of 'em and me and Sam are researching ways to stop them, it just takes some time."

"You're researching?" Alec asked curiously.

Dean bumped against Alec's shoulder and said, "Of course we are! You think we just started to notice you having nightmares? It's been goin' on since we found you; it's just gotten worse since you nearly checked out on me and there aren't a lot of solutions out there. Besides, you know how long it took me to figure out that whole bed thing?"

Alec smiled a little at that and shook his head.

"Since after the Djinn! It took me forever," Dean said.

"I thought you guys knew already," Alec said, amusement creeping into his voice. "You guys never asked so I thought that it was obvious."

"We can be a little slow sometimes," Dean replied with a small chuckle. "You might need to spell a few things out for us." Alec actually laughed a little, and then Dean said more seriously, "But we're gonna keep working on this ok? If you want to talk about something, just tell me. Or if you need some time by yourself, that's fine too. Just don't hang out on rooftops anymore ok?"

"What is it with you and heights," Alec asked with a smile.

"Shut up," Dean said. He was laughing though and he messed up Alec's hair out of habit. Alec lightly shoved him back, but then sobered a little.

"Thanks Dean," Alec said after a moment. Dean gave Alec a little side hug and they sat in silence for a minute. "I'm really glad that I decided not to shoot you guys and steal your car when you found me…" Alec said with a smile.

Dean snorted in disbelief, "There's no way I would've let you steal my Baby."

Alec shrugged and suddenly held up the keys to the Impala, "I don't know, seems pretty easy to me…"

"You little thief!" Dean exclaimed. He reached for the keys but Alec held them out of his reach.

"That was way too easy," Alec said with a laugh. His eyes widened though when Dean suddenly brought him to the ground. They rolled around; Dean kept trying to reach for the keys, but Alec always kept them just out of reach.

Alec finally managed to wiggle free and he stood up, holding the keys up in victory. He did a little victory dance as Dean got back to his feet and stood in front of Alec. He tried to look mad, but he couldn't quite keep the smile off of his face.

Dean suddenly looped his arm around Alec's neck and ruffled his hair. Alec tried to throw Dean off, and Dean snagged the keys while Alec was distracted.

"Hey!"

"That's what you get," Dean said with a laugh. Alec tried to glare at him, but he was smiling too. "C'mon, we better head back. Abby's probably got Sam in makeup this time."

Alec's eyes lit up, "Oh man, I hope so! You should've gotten a picture of his hair earlier because that was hilarious."

* * *

Sam watched as Dean, Alec, and Luke loaded their things in the car. They had come back last night and Alec had seemed happier than he had been in days. Whatever Dean had talked to him about must have worked, which Sam was glad to see.

Alec had stayed with him again that night, and as far as Sam could tell, he slept through the night.

"But why!?" Abby whined loudly. "I don't want Sammy to go!"

"Honey, they have to go back to their own lives. They don't want to babysit forever," Lauren explained patiently.

"No," Abby said, stomping her foot and crossing her arms in defiance.

Sam leaned over a little on his crutches to try and get Abby's attention. She looked up at him with shining eyes so Sam said softly, "We have to go back to work now, but maybe we can visit you sometime. Would that be ok?"

"I want you to stay," Abby said, her little lip trembling.

"I know, but I'm an old person and I've gotta go to work," Sam tried to explain.

"Promise you'll come back?" Abby finally pleaded.

Sam looked up at Lauren and she gave him a small smile of encouragement.

"I promise. I'll come back to see you," Sam said sincerely.

Abby's face lit up and she ran at Sam. She jumped and wrapped her arms around his neck to hold herself up and Sam released one of his crutches in surprise. He caught her though and picked her up the rest of the way.

"Promise you won't cut your pretty hair," Abby said, running her tiny fingers through his hair.

Sam laughed, "Ok, I promise."

"Ok Abby, Sam has to go now," Lauren said.

Abby reluctantly let him go and he set her back on the ground and picked up his fallen crutch. She ran outside and ran right to Dean. He scooped her up as soon as she got to him. Sam smiled and almost wished they could stay longer, but they still had a job to do.

"You better watch her, she might try to sneak off with us," Sam warned Lauren with a smile.

"If she did, then at least I'd know I'd see you boys again," Lauren replied with a knowing look.

"We'll try to come by if we're in the area," Sam reassured.

"You better," Lauren said sternly. She gave Sam a quick hug, and then they both went out to the Impala. Chris and Zach came out right before they were about to leave.

"So, you're gonna come back right?" Luke asked Alec as Sam walked up. "Dad said he's gonna take me huntin' soon. Said he thinks I'm old enough to go deer huntin' with him. When you come back, maybe you can go with us. Dad said it'd be ok and I want you to go with us."

Alec looked to Dean who was talking to Abby. Dean looked back at him and nodded. "Yeah, we're comin' back," Alec replied. "I'd love to go hunting with you."

"Yes!" Luke said excitedly, and he gave Alec a hug. Alec's eyes widened in shock, but he gave Luke a hug back. Sam couldn't help chuckling at Alec's surprise.

Sam and Lauren both stopped at the front of the Impala and Alec, Luke, Dean, and Abby all met up with them. Chris and Zach walked up after a moment and Dean tried to pass Abby over to Chris, but she wouldn't let go of his neck.

"You sure you don't want to stay until your leg's healed?" Zach asked. He'd already asked this about 4 times, but Sam knew it was time to move on.

"No, I think I'll be alright," Sam replied.

"You guys will come back won't you?" Chris asked after a moment.

"Yeah, we'll be back," Dean said. "As long as you guys don't mind us?"

"We'd love to have you!" Zach said.

"Anytime you're in the area, don't be afraid to stop by," Chris threw in.

"You guys are always welcome here," Zach said.

"Thanks for everything," Dean said.

Chris, Zach, and Lauren gave each of them hugs. Chris said something to Alec and he smiled, but Sam couldn't quite hear what it was. Luke and Abby gave each of them a hug, but Abby was still reluctant to let them leave. She had to let them go though and Chris picked her up as he, Dean, and Alec all piled into the Impala.

"Can we actually come back here sometime?" Alec asked after they'd been driving for a few miles.

"Yeah," Dean replied easily. "I promised a little girl that'd I'd come see her again and I'm pretty sure Sam made that same promise."

"Yes I did," Sam said with a chuckle.

"Good," Alec said. It was quiet for a minute, and then he asked, "Where to next?"

"I think it's time to keep another promise that we made," Dean said. He looked in the rearview mirror and met Alec's curious gaze. "I think it's time to give Max another visit."

Alec smiled and leaned back in his seat. Sam shot Dean a smile before he too got more comfortable for the drive ahead.

* * *

 _The End._


End file.
